New Deal

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what benchmarks he uses to measure the performance of the new deal.

Jim Murphy: The new deal has been a real success—helping 1.65 million people in total, back into work. We now spend £5 billion less per year on unemployment benefits than a decade ago.

Benefit Recipients: Peterborough

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many in each electoral ward of Peterborough constituency have been in receipt of  (a) jobseekers allowance,  (b) incapacity benefit and  (c) disability living allowance since 2001 in each electoral ward; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: The available information is in the following tables.
	
		
			  Jobseeker's allowance claimants in each electoral ward in Peterborough parliamentary constituency 
			   As at May: 
			  Ward name  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Bretton North 160 125 155 165 205 220 
			 Bretton South 45 45 40 35 50 60 
			 Central 280 280 325 300 315 345 
			 Dogsthorpe 210 170 160 150 185 205 
			 East 235 195 200 190 230 275 
			 North 65 55 95 85 95 110 
			 Park 100 85 135 120 145 135 
			 Paston 145 110 135 135 160 185 
			 Ravensthorpe 155 120 145 140 180 180 
			 Walton 80 75 65 75 80 95 
			 Werrington North 75 60 75 65 85 90 
			 Werrington South 30 45 35 40 40 30 
			 West 45 60 75 60 80 70 
			  Notes: 1. Case load figures are rounded too the nearest five; some additional disclosure control has also been applied. 2. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 3. Case loads are for all entitled cases and so include cases where payment has been suspended.  Source: DWP Information Directorate. 
		
	
	
		
			  Incapacity benefit and severe disablement allowance claimants in each electoral ward in Peterborough parliamentary constituency 
			   As at May: 
			  Ward name  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Bretton North 455 480 490 490 485 485 
			 Bretton South 110 115 120 130 130 130 
			 Central 630 630 650 600 595 570 
			 Dogsthorpe 590 605 605 595 635 600 
			 East 555 560 535 570 565 555 
			 North 280 310 315 325 335 355 
			 Park 265 275 255 255 260 270 
			 Paston 425 455 450 455 470 460 
			 Ravensthorpe 390 420 430 445 420 425 
			 Walton 220 225 230 225 240 240 
			 Werrington North 265 275 265 265 270 265 
			 Werrington South 175 165 170 175 180 165 
			 West 255 240 230 225 230 240 
			  Notes: 1. Case load figures are rounded too the nearest five; some additional disclosure control has also been applied. 2. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 3. Case loads are for all entitled cases and so include cases where payment has been suspended.  Source: DWP Information Directorate. 
		
	
	
		
			  Disability living allowance claimants in each electoral ward in Peterborough parliamentary constituency 
			   As at May: 
			  Ward name  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Bretton North 415 465 470 465 470 
			 Bretton South 90 90 100 100 110 
			 Central 490 505 495 500 505 
			 Dogsthorpe 495 530 550 570 580 
			 East 460 505 540 525 520 
			 North 300 330 345 355 375 
			 Park 220 225 240 260 265 
			 Paston 405 435 435 465 460 
			 Ravensthorpe 385 410 395 385 410 
			 Walton 230 235 245 255 270 
			 Werrington North 275 285 295 310 310 
			 Werrington South 170 175 185 195 190 
			 West 230 245 250 265 250 
			  Notes: 1. Case load figures are rounded too the nearest five; some additional disclosure control has also been applied. 2. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 3. Case loads are for all entitled cases and so include cases where payment has been suspended. 4. Data for disability living allowance at ward level is not available prior to 2002.  Source: DWP Information Directorate.

Benefits

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of children living in households with no adult in work in  (a) each London borough and  (b) the UK are (i) in single parent households, (ii) in a household with at least one parent claiming incapacity benefit and (iii) in a household with at least one adult on jobseeker's allowance; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Murphy: The available information is in the table.
	Data is only available for Great Britain not for the UK. A London borough has been interpreted as a local authority. A workless household is a household containing someone claiming either income support, jobseeker's allowance, incapacity benefit/severe disability allowance, or pension credit.
	
		
			  Percentage 
			   Proportion of children in workless households with: 
			   A lone parent  At least one parent claiming incapacity benefit  At least one parent claiming jobseeker's allowance 
			 Great Britain 78 26 8 
			 
			  London local authorities:
			 City of London 73 23 15 
			 Barking and Dagenham 81 18 8 
			 Barnet 81 18 9 
			 Bexley 86 16 7 
			 Brent 80 19 8 
			 Bromley 84 17 7 
			 Camden 77 20 9 
			 Croydon 84 16 7 
			 Ealing 79 20 8 
			 Enfield 79 20 8 
			 Greenwich 85 15 6 
			 Hackney 80 17 6 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 84 17 5 
			 Haringey 81 18 7 
			 Harrow 79 21 9 
			 Havering 83 22 6 
			 Hillingdon 83 19 8 
			 Hounslow 81 20 7 
			 Islington 84 17 6 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 80 22 5 
			 Kingston upon Thames 83 18 8 
			 Lambeth 88 12 6 
			 Lewisham 86 15 6 
			 Merton 81 15 11 
			 Newham 75 19 10 
			 Redbridge 76 20 11 
			 Richmond upon Thames 83 19 8 
			 Southwark 87 14 6 
			 Sutton 84 18 7 
			 Tower Hamlets 57 21 19 
			 Waltham Forest 79 17 10 
			 Wandsworth 83 15 8 
			 Westminster 73 29 7 
			  Notes: 1. All figures supplied have been rounded to protect the confidentiality of claimants. 2. All data represent a snapshot in time of claimants on the computer system, and will therefore exclude a very small number of cases that are held clerically. 3. Data represents children dependent on a parent or guardian claiming one or more of the following benefits: incapacity benefit, severe disablement allowance, jobseeker's allowance, income support or pension credit. 4. Due to the introduction of child tax credits in April 2003, information on child dependents are not reliably completed on the benefit computer system. Therefore children have been merged onto IS/JSA/IB/SDA/PC claims from child benefit with permission of HMRC. 5. Partner status refers to cases with a partner recorded on the system only and is not a definitive measure of singles/couples. 6. Incapacity benefit status excludes residual SDA cases.  Source: DWP Information Directorate, April 2006

Child Poverty

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many children in the UK have been in absolute low income poverty in each year since 1979-80; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Murphy: Specific information regarding low income for Great Britain is available in "Households Below Average Income 1994-95—2004-05". The survey from which estimates are provided started in 1994-95. There is no data source consistent with the Family Resources Survey for the years prior to 1994-95.
	Absolute low income is defined as being below 60 per cent. of 1996-97 median income held constant in real terms. The information in the following table is shown on a before housing costs and an after housing costs basis.
	
		
			  Number of children living in absolute low income 
			   Number of children (million) 
			  Financial year  Before housing costs  After housing costs 
			 1994-95 3.3 4.3 
			 1995-96 3.2 4.4 
			 1996-97 3.2 4.2 
			 1997-98 3.0 4.0 
			 1998-99 2.8 3.9 
			 1999-2000 2.4 3.6 
			 2000-01 2.0 3.0 
			 2001-02 1.6 2.5 
			 2002-03 1.5 2.2 
			 2003-04 1.4 2.2 
			 2004-05 1.4 1.9 
			  Source: Family Resources Survey

Child Poverty

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the proportion of children in poverty, broken down by age band; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Murphy: Low income is defined as being below 60 per cent. of contemporary median income. The information is shown in the following tables, on a before housing costs and after housing costs basis.
	
		
			  Children living in low-income households, by age band before housing costs, 1994-95, 1996-97 and 2004-05 
			  Percentage 
			  Age band  1994-95  1996-97  2004-05 
			 Under 5 years old 22 23 16 
			 5-10 years old 26 27 19 
			 11 years old and over 22 24 22 
			 All Children 23 25 19 
		
	
	
		
			  Children living in low-income households, by age band after housing costs, 1994-95, 1996-97 and 2004-05 
			  Percentage 
			  Age band  1994-95  1996-97  2004-05 
			 Under 5 years old 33 35 27 
			 5-10 years old 34 36 28 
			 11 years old and over 27 30 27 
			 All Children 31 33 27 
			  Source: Family Resources Survey 2004-05.

Income Levels

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the income thresholds used in paragraph 7 of the reply by the Government to the Second Report of the Work and Pensions Select Committee of Session 2003-04, Cm 6200, are in weekly amounts of income in 2004-05 prices  (a) before and  (b) after housing costs for (i) relative low income and (ii) absolute low income (A) couples with no children (equivalised income benchmark), (B) single people with no children, (C) couples with four children under 16, (D) single people with four children under 16, (E) couples with two children aged five and 11, (F) single people with two children aged five and 11, (G) couples with one child aged five and (H) single people with one aged five.

Jim Murphy: The available information is in the following table:
	
		
			  £ per week 
			   Low income thresholds (weekly) 
			   Before housing costs  After housing costs 
			 Relative low income 194 172 
			 Absolute low income 166 140 
			  Source:  Households Below Average Income 2002-03

House of Lords Reform

Bob Spink: To ask the Leader of the House what recent consultations he has undertaken on reform of the House of Lords.

Jack Straw: I have been working with colleagues on all sides of both Houses over the recent months as part of an intensive effort to reach a consensus on how a future House of Lords my look. I intend to bring forward a White Paper soon, setting out the Government's proposals on composition and transition, which will take account of the recent Joint Committee on Conventions report, and the on-going cross-party discussions. A free vote in both Houses on the composition of the House will then follow.

M6 Toll Road

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the effect of the creation of the M6 toll road on the number of vehicles using alternative motorways and roads in the area.

Stephen Ladyman: Following the opening of the M6 toll a number of reports have been produced. These include the M6 Traffic Monitoring Study: Traffic Impact Study Report which covered the first three months after opening and the M6 Toll After Study: Traffic and Safety Summary which covered the first year of opening. Both reports are available on the Highways Agency website at:
	http://www.highways.gov.uk/roads/documents/220_m6_toll_traffic_study.pdf
	http://www.highways.gov.uk/roads/documents/one_year_after_study.pdf
	Copies have also been placed in the Libraries of the House. The Highways Agency continues to monitor traffic flows on the motorway and trunk roads in the area.

M6 Toll Road

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many  (a) cars,  (b) lorries and  (c) motorbikes used the M6 toll road in each year since its creation.

Stephen Ladyman: The operators of the M6 toll, Midland Expressway Limited, have provided the following figures showing the annual number of vehicles using the toll road since it opened in December 2003. In addition to the categories requested, the company separately records details of vans and light commercial vehicles and these have also been included.
	
		
			   Cars  Lorries  Motorcycles  Vans/light commercial  Total 
			 2004 15,775,261 261,787 41,356 664,441 16,742,845 
			 2005 15,244,547 378,385 35,040 686,377 16,344,349 
			 2006(1) 11,961,606 362,365 31,142 567,641 12,922,754 
			 Sub total 42,981,414 1,002,537 107,538 1,918,459 46,009,948 
			 (1) To end of September.

Pay Bargaining Unit

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what percentage of the staff in each pay bargaining unit in his Department are  (a) male and  (b) female at (i) AO and (ii) EO grades.

Gillian Merron: holding answer 19 December 2006
	The percentage of the staff currently working in each pay bargaining unit within the Department for Transport at AO and EO grades is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  AO Grades 
			  Percentage 
			   Male  Female 
			 DfT(c) 34.36 65.64 
			 DSA 45.10 54.90 
			 DVLA 32.98 67.02 
			 GCDA 34.62 65.38 
			 HA 41.41 58.59 
			 MCA 50.41 49.59 
			 VCA 58.62 41.38 
			 VOSA 55.54 44.46 
			 All DfT 39.43 60.57 
		
	
	
		
			  EO Grades 
			  Percentage 
			   Males  Females 
			 DfT(c) 54.52 45.48 
			 DSA 37.40 62.60 
			 DVLA 34.54 65.46 
			 GCDA 78.95 21.05 
			 HA 41.55 58.45 
			 MCA 74.73 25.27 
			 VGA 64.29 35.71 
			 VOSA 84.64 15.36 
			 All DfT 56.81 43.19

Pay Bargaining Unit

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport at which grades there is a pay gap of more than 5 per cent. in each pay bargaining unit in his Department between  (a) white and ethnic minority staff,  (b) staff with disabilities and staff without disabilities and  (c) full-time and part-time workers based on full-time equivalent pay.

Gillian Merron: holding answer 19 December 2006
	The following table sets out details of the pay gaps exceeding 5 per cent. in the categories set out in the question for the Department and its bargaining units.
	
		
			   Pay gap exceeding 5 per cent. between: 
			   (a) white and ethnic minority staff  (b) staff with disabilities and staff without disabilities  (c) full-time and part-time workers based on full-time equivalent pay 
			 DfT (Centre ) None None None 
			 
			 Vehicle Certification Agency None None None 
			   
			 Highways Agency HA are not able to provide this information within the required time scale(1) 
			 
			 Vehicle and Operator Services Agency None None None 
			 
			 Driving Standards Agency None None None 
			 
			 Maritime and Coastguard Agency August 2006 Equal Pay Audit identified the following pay gaps exceeding 5 per cent.: August 2006 Equal Pay Audit identified the following pay gaps exceeding 5 per cent.: None 
			  Pay band D (HEO) Pay Band B (AO)  
			  Pay Band E3 (MS1) Pay Band C (EO)  
			  Pay Band G (G6) Pay Band F (G7)  
			 
			 Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency None None None 
			 
			 Government Car and Despatch Agency None None None 
			 (1) HA have provided the following explanation: "The data used in the equal pay audit was from the 2004 pay award which is now out of date. Although the gender pay gap details have been updated with each subsequent pay award, the data used in 2004 and in the 2006 RIA only showed ethnicity details for some 60 per cent. of staff. Our diversity team have undertaken work to improve the data which we hope will enable the 2007 RIA to be more statistically significant. This also applies to question B regarding disabled over non-disabled and question C, part-time over full-time".

Roads

Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much was received in road tax revenues in each year since 1997.

Stephen Ladyman: The vehicle excise duty revenues (net of refunds) received each year since 1997 are shown as follows:
	
		
			  Net VED receipts 
			   £000 
			 2005-06 4,952,918 
			 2004-05 4,737,138 
			 2003-04 4,688,689 
			 2002-03 4,386,826 
			 2001-02 4,389,343 
			 2000-01 4,934,595 
			 1999-2000 4,738,048 
			 1998-99 4,855,249 
			 1997-98 4,487,175

Roadworks

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much  (a) the Highways Agency and  (b) each local authority has (i) been allocated and (ii) spent on road maintenance in each of the last 10 years.

Stephen Ladyman: Over the last 10 years, the Highways Agency has been allocated, and spent, the following amounts on road maintenance.
	
		
			  £ million 
			   Allocation  Expenditure 
			 2005-06 865 852 
			 2004-05 730 732 
			 2003-04 748 726 
			 2002-03 740 760 
			 2001-02 687 711 
			 2000-01 661 736 
			 1999-2000 765 726 
			 1998-99 651 638 
			 1997-98 523 499 
			 1996-97 517 428 
		
	
	The Department for Transport provides local authorities in England (outside London) with capital highway maintenance funding as part of the Local Transport Plan (LTP) settlement for investment in their network. This funding is not ring fenced. It is for each local authority to determine how their allocations are spent, in line with their priorities.
	Records on each local authorities' LTP highway maintenance capital allocations and spend were introduced following the introduction in 2001-02 of LTPs. The Department also provides funding to local highway authorities to support them with their highway maintenance of de-trunked roads.
	Details of the funding allocated for capital highway maintenance, by the Department, to all English local authorities outside London through the LTP settlement since its introduction and for de-trunked roads have been placed in the Library of the House.
	We have also allocated £121 million PFI credits to support the contractual obligations under a whole highway maintenance contract signed by Portsmouth city council in July 2004 and £444 million PFI credits to support 16 local authority PFI street lighting schemes.
	Funding for local authority maintenance on local roads in London is a matter for the Mayor.
	Local authorities' budgets for highways maintenance revenue expenditure are set by each local authority, to reflect their local priorities in line with their proposed spending of their formula grant and the council's own income. Information on local authorities' revenue budgets and outturn revenue expenditure is collected by the Department for Communities and Local Government.

Vehicle Safety

Susan Kramer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the number of road traffic accidents which were caused by mechanical faults in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Stephen Ladyman: The number of personal injury road accidents in which a 'vehicle defect' was a contributory factor reported by the attending police officer, are given in the following table:
	Data prior to 2005 are not available. Information on damage only accidents is not collected.
	
		
			  Number of accidents where a "vehicle defect" was reported as a contributory factor: GB 2005 
			  Contributory factor ( 1) Number of accidents 
			 Tyres illegal, defective or under inflated 1,128 
			 Defective lights or indicators 282 
			 Defective brakes 934 
			 Defective steering or suspension 338 
			 Defective or missing mirrors 19 
			 Overloaded or poorly loaded vehicle or trailer 369 
			 Any vehicle defects(2) 2,937 
			 (1 )Only includes accidents where a police officer attended the scene (2) Does not add up to the sum of the factors above as an accident may have more than one factor

Children in Care

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  how many children under the age of one were taken into care in each year since 1980; and how many were subsequently returned to their birth parents;
	(2)  how many babies under one year old were placed in care in  (a) 1996 and  (b) 2006; and for what reasons.

Parmjit Dhanda: Information on the number of children aged under one who were taken into care on an interim or full care order or under a police or emergency protection order in each year since 1992 is shown in Table 1. This information is not available prior to 1992. Of these, 3,000 children who were taken into care aged under one subsequently returned home between 2001 and 2006 to live with parents, relatives or other person with parental responsibility (excluding residence orders and special guardianship orders). Information on whether a child returned to live with their parents, relatives or other person with parental responsibility has only been collected since 1 April 2000. There is no comparable information prior to 2000.
	In the case of all children subject to a care order, the reason they have become looked after is because the courts will have taken the view that the 'significant harm' threshold set out in the Children Act 1989 had been crossed. Information on the number of children looked after by local authorities who were placed in care aged under one in 1996 and in 2006 and for what reasons, is shown in Tables 2 and 3. The 'category of need' codes record the main reason why a child is being provided with services. This provides a further insight as to why a particular child is being looked after. Information on 'category of need' was first collected in April 2000 and provides further information as to why a child is being looked after. Data on 'category of need' is not strictly comparable with the 'reason for being looked after' information that was collected prior to 1 April 2000.
	
		
			  Table 1: Children who were taken into care on an interim or full care order and under a police or emergency protection order( 1) 
			  England  Number 
			  Year ending 31 March  Children taken into care under one on an interim or full care order and under a police or emergency protection order ( 2,3,4,5) 
			 1992(6) 310 
			 1993 730 
			 1994 1,000 
			 1995 1,200 
			 1996 1,200 
			 1997 1,300 
			 1998(7) 1,400 
			 1999 1,600 
			 200(7) 1,900 
			 2001(7) 1,800 
			 2002(7) 1,900 
			 2003(7) 2,000 
			 2004 2,000 
			 2005 2,000 
			 2006 2,100 
			 (1). Source, DfES, SSDA903 return which between 1992 and 1997 and since 2004 covered all children looked after by local authorities. SSDA903 covered only a third of children looked after by local authorities between 1998 and 2003.  (2). Figures for children looked after in this table exclude agreed series of short term placements  (3.) To maintain the confidentiality of each individual child, data at national level are rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000 to the nearest 10 otherwise.  (4). Historical data may differ from older publications. This is mainly due to the implementation of amendments and corrections sent by some local authorities after the publication date of previous materials.  (5). Only the first occasion on which a child started to be looked after in the year has been counted.  (6). The figure was for the period 14 October to 31 March 1992 this was due to the implementation of the Children Act 1989  (7). SSDA903 only covered a third of children looked after by local authorities 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Children aged under one who were placed in care during the year ending 31 March 1996 by reason for being looked after( 1,2,3) 
			  England  Number 
			  Reason for being looked after  1996( 4,5) 
			   
			 All Children who started to be looked after aged under one 3,300 
			 No parents 10 
			 Abandoned or lost 70 
			 Family or child homeless 20 
			 Parent(s) in prison 40 
			 Breakdown of adoptive family — 
			 Preliminary to adoption 390 
			 Parent's health 400 
			 Parents/families need relief — 
			 - child with disabilities 10 
			 - other 480 
			 Abuse or neglect 1,300 
			 Concern for child's welfare 310 
			 Own behaviour 30 
			 Accused or guilty of an offence 0 
			 At request of child 0 
			 Other 270 
			 (1). Source, DfES, SSDA903 return which In 1996 covered all children looked after by local authorities.  (2). Only the first occasion on which a child started to be looked after in the year has been counted.  (3). Figures for children looked after in this table exclude agreed series of short term placements.  (4). To maintain the confidentiality of each individual child, data at national level are rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000 to the nearest 10 otherwise.  (5). Historical data may differ from older publications. This is mainly due to the implementation of amendments and corrections sent by some local authorities after the publication date of previous materials. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Children aged under one who were placed in care during the year ending 31 March 2006 by category of need ( 1,2,3) 
			  England  Number 
			  Category of need  2006(4,5) 
			   
			 All children who started to be looked after aged under one 4,300 
			 Abuse or neglect 2,800 
			 Child's Disability 40 
			 Parental illness or disability 310 
			 Family in acute stress 320 
			 Family dysfunction 470 
			 Socially Unacceptable behaviour 10 
			 Low income 10 
			 Absent parenting 270 
			 (1). Source, DfES, SSDA903 return which in 2006 covered all children looked after by local authorities.  (2). Only the first occasion on which a child started to be looked after in the year has been counted.  (3). Figures for children looked after in this table exclude agreed series of short term placements.  (4). To maintain the confidentiality of each individual child, data at national level are rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000 to the nearest 10 otherwise.  (5). Historical data may differ from older publications. This is mainly due to the implementation of amendments and corrections sent by some local authorities after the publication date of previous materials.

Connexions

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what guidance his Department has provided on best practice for the governance and operational arrangements of successor bodies to local Connexions.

Parmjit Dhanda: Following the publication of "Every Child Matters" and "Youth Matters" funding which currently goes to Connexions Partnerships will go directly to all 150 local authority areas in England by April 2008 and will be managed through children's trust arrangements.
	Guidance on children's trust governance arrangements can be found in the statutory guidance around section 10 of the Children Act 2004. Guidance on local authority decision making processes more generally has been produced by Communities and Local Government.
	The "Specification for services funded through the Connexions grant 2006-08" provides local authorities with the statutory provisions which must be delivered by all organisations which receive the Connexions grant funding—together with the targets which are attached to the funding; and other specified (but non-statutory) requirements. It also provides guidance on the broad delivery processes that have been key to the Connexions contribution to the "Every Child Matters" and 14-19 strategies.

Education Funding: North Lincolnshire

Elliot Morley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the change in the education budget in North Lincolnshire was in each of the last 10 years.

Jim Knight: holding answer 19 December 2006
	The Department does not hold this information prior to 1999-2000. The following table sets out the total budgeted education revenue expenditure received by North Lincolnshire since 1999-2000:
	
		
			  Total budgeted education revenue expenditure( 1)  by North Lincolnshire local authority since 1999-2000( 2) . Cash terms figures( 3)  as reported  by North Lincolnshire LA as at 15 December 2006 
			   Budgeted education revenue expenditure (£)  Cash increase from previous year (£)  Percentage increase from previous year (%) 
			 1999-00 69,720,000 — — 
			 2000-01 74,066,000 4,346,000 6.2 
			 2001-02 79,251,000 5,185,000 7.0 
			 2002-03 83,374,000 4,123,000 5.2 
			 2003-04 92,861,000 9,487,000 11.4 
			 2004-05 99,719,000 6,858,000 7.4 
			 2005-06 104,945,000 5,226,000 5.2 
			 2006-07 109,599,000 4,654,000 4.4 
			 (1) Budgeted education revenue expenditure is drawn from North Lincolnshire's Section 52 Budget Statements submitted to the DfES. This is calculated as the gross elements of any grants lines plus the net elements of the remainder of the education revenue budget.  (2) Comparable figures are not available prior to the inception of Section 52 for the financial year 1999-2000.  (3) Cash figures are rounded to the nearest 1,000 and may not sum due to rounding.

Education: Qualifications

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of pupils gained 5 A*-C grades including  (a) vocational equivalents and  (b) applied GCSE double awards in each year since 1997.

Jim Knight: Since 1997, GNVQs have been included in the reported results of GCSEs and equivalents. Applied GCSE Double Awards have been included since 2004 when a range of other equivalences were included for the first time. The table shows the percentage of 15-year-old pupils(1) achieving five or more GCSEs or equivalents at grades A*-C since 1997, split by the coverage of the equivalents.
	
		
			  Percentage of 15-year-old pupils achieving 5+ A*-C at GCSE including: 
			   All vocational equivalents( 2)  Applied GCSE double awards 
			 1997 45.1 — 
			 1998 46.3 — 
			 1999 47.9 — 
			 2000 49.2 — 
			 2001 50.0 — 
			 2002 51.6 — 
			 2003 52.9 — 
			 2004 53.7 51.3 
			 2005 56.2 52.6 
			 2006(3) 57.9 53.3 
			 (1 )Pupils aged 15 at the start of the academic year i.e. 31 August.  (2 )1997-2003 figures include GNVQs only.  (3) Data for 2006 are provisional. Data for all other years are final.

Educational Maintenance Allowance: Lincolnshire

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of pupils in further education in Lincolnshire received the educational maintenance allowance in each year since 2004.

Phil Hope: This is a matter for the Learning and Skills Council, who operate Education Maintenance Allowances for the DfES and hold the information about take-up of the scheme. Mark Haysom, the Council's chief executive, has written to the hon. Member with the information requested and a copy of his reply has been placed in the House Library.
	 Letter from Mark Haysom, dated 22 December 2006:
	I am writing in response to your recent Parliamentary Question that asked what percentage of pupils in further education in Lincolnshire received the educational maintenance allowance in each year since 2004?
	Information on the number of young people who have applied, enrolled and received Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) is available at Local Authority level EMA take-up is defined as young people who have received one or more EMA payment in the academic year.
	The National EMA scheme was phased in over time to successive 16-year old age groups. 2004/05 was the first year of National EMA and therefore we can only give data for 16 year olds in that year of those that were in full time education, in the Lincolnshire Local Authority area some 49.6% received one or more EMA payment.
	This percentage is based on the participation estimates of 16 year olds in full time education that are outlined within the Statistical First Release 13/2006. In 2004/05 the amount of 16 year olds in education was 6300. However it should be noted that not all those in full time education would have been eligible for EMA on income grounds. At present we are unable to give similar percentages for 2005/06 as the sub-national participation estimates for 2005 are not currently available. They are due to be published in June 2007.

Free School Meals

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which  (a) secondary and  (b) primary schools had the (i) highest and (ii) lowest percentage of pupils receiving free school meals in each local education authority area; what the percentage figure was in each case; and what the type of school was in each case.

Jim Knight: The information requested has been placed in the House Libraries.

Free School Meals

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children in  (a) Leeds, West and  (b) Leeds (i) are entitled to and (ii) claim free school meals.

Jim Knight: The requested information is given in the table.
	
		
			  Maintained Nursery, Primary and Secondary schools: School meal arrangements ( 1)  As at January 2006 Leeds West parliamentary constituency and Leeds local authority area 
			   Leeds West parliamentary constituency  Leeds local authority area 
			   Nursery and Primary schools  Secondary schools  Nursery and Primary schools  Secondary schools 
			 Number of pupils on roll (2) 6,949 4,040 61,571 47,847 
			 Number of pupils taking free school meals on the day of the Census 1,448 724 9,028 5,338 
			 Percentage of pupils taking free school meals on the day of the Census (3) 20.8 17.9 14.7 11.2 
			 Number of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals 1,730 1,005 11,257 8,292 
			 Percentage of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals (4) 24.9 24.9 18.3 17.3 
			 (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) Includes pupils with sole and dual main registration. Includes boarding pupils. (3) The number of pupils who took a free school meal on the day of the Census expressed as a percentage of the number of pupils on roll. (4) The number of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals expressed as a percentage of the number of pupils on roll.  Source:  School Census

Looked-after Children

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  how many children were  (a) in foster care and  (b) placed for adoption in each of the last 10 years;
	(2)  how many adoption placements broke down in each of the last 10 years;
	(3)  how many children were  (a) placed for foster care and  (b) placed for adoption with extended family members in each of the last five years;
	(4)  how many looked-after children there are in West Sussex;
	(5)  what percentage of looked-after children in  (a) West Sussex,  (b) Brighton and Hove unitary and  (c) East Sussex went on to university in the last year for which figures are available.

Parmjit Dhanda: Information on the number of children looked after by local authorities who have been in foster care and who have been placed for adoption in each of the last 10 years is shown in table 1.
	Information on the number of adoption placements that have broken down in each of the last 10 years is shown in table 2.
	Information on the number of children looked after by local authorities who have been placed for foster care with extended family members in each of the last five years is shown in table 3. Information on the number of children placed for adoption with extended family members is not collected centrally. 750 children were looked after by West Sussex local authority in 2006. Information on the percentage of children looked after by West Sussex, Brighton and Hove unitary and by East Sussex who went on to university last year is not collected centrally. However the Department collects information on the number of young persons "in-touch" with the local authority aged 19 who are in higher education who were previously looked after by each of these three local authorities aged 16 or over on 1 April 2002. This information is shown in table 4.
	
		
			  Table 1: Children looked after by local authorities placed in foster care and placed for adoption at 31 March 1997 to 2006( 1, 2, 3, 4) , England 
			  Number 
			  As at 31 March:  All children looked after by local authorities  Children looked after placed in foster care  Children looked after placed for adoption  Children looked after in other type of placements( 5) 
			 1997 51,400 33,700 2,400 15,300 
			 1998(6) 53,300 35,000 2,400 15,900 
			 1999(6) 55,500 36,200 2,900 16,400 
			 2000(6) 58,100 37,900 3,100 17,100 
			 2001(6) 58,900 38,400 3,400 17,100 
			 2002(6) 59,700 39,200 3,600 16,900 
			 2003(6) 60,800 41,100 3,400 16,300 
			 2004 61,200 41,200 3,600 16,400 
			 2005 60,900 41,300 3,400 16,200 
			 2006 60,300 42,000 2,900 15,500 
			 (1) Source, DfES, SSDA903 return which in 1997 and since 2004 covered 'all' children looked after by local authorities. SSDA903 covered only a third of children looked after by local authorities between 1998 and 2003. (2) Figures for children looked after in this table exclude agreed series of short-term placements. (3) To maintain the confidentiality of each individual child, data at national level are rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000 or to the nearest 10 otherwise. (4) Historical data may differ from older publications. This is mainly due to the implementation of amendments and corrections sent by some local authorities after the publication date of previous materials. (5) Figures include children looked after by local authority who are placed with own parents, who are placed in independent living, in residential employment, in secure units, in homes and hostels, in residential accommodation not subject to children's homes regulations, in other residential settings, in schools and finally children who are missing from placements and who are in other placements not listed. (6) SSDA903 only covered a third of children looked after by local authorities. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Adoption placements that broke down in each of the years ending 31 March 1997 to 2006( 1, 2, 3, 4) , England 
			  Number 
			  Year ending 31 March:  Adoption placements that broke down( 5) 
			 1997 360 
			 1998 280 
			 1999 320 
			 2000 250 
			 2001 280 
			 2002 270 
			 2003 240 
			 2004 290 
			 2005 250 
			 2006 210 
			 (1) Source, DfES, SSDA903 return which in 1997 and since 2004 covered all children looked after by local authorities. SSDA903 covered only a third of children looked after by local authorities between 1998 and 2003. (2) Figures for children looked after in this table exclude agreed series of short-term placements. (3) To maintain the confidentiality of each individual child, data at national level are rounded or to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000 or to the nearest 10 otherwise. (4) Note that figures represent the number of adoptions 'placements' that have broken down. They are not comparable with figures in table 1 and table 3 showing the number of children placed for adoption. (5) Adoption placements that have broken down exclude placements for adoption that were followed by an adoption or still open at 31 March 2006 or because the child's care was taken over by another local authority in the United Kingdom or because the child was transferred to the residential care funded by adult social services. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Children looked after by local authorities placed in foster care and placed for adoption at 31 March 1997 to 2006( 1, 2, 3, 4) , England 
			  Number 
			  As at 31 March:  All children looked after by local authorities  Children looked after placed in foster care  Children looked after placed in foster care with relative or friend  Children looked after placed in foster care not with relative or friend  Children looked after placed for adoption  Children looked after in other type of placements( 5) 
			 2002(6) 59,700 39,200 7,100 32,100 3,600 16,900 
			 2003(6) 60,800 41,100 7,700 33,300 3,400 16,300 
			 2004 61,200 41,200 7,700 33,500 3,600 16,400 
			 2005 60,900 41,300 7,600 33,700 3,400 16,200 
			 2006 60,300 42,000 7,400 34,600 2,900 15,500 
			 (1) Source, DfES, SSDA903 return which since 2004 covered all children looked after by local authorities. SSDA903 covered only a third of children looked after by local authorities in 2002 and 2003. (2) Figures for children looked after in this table exclude agreed series of short-term placements (3) To maintain the confidentiality of each individual child, data at national level are rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000 or to the nearest 10 otherwise. (4) Historical data may differ from older publications. This is mainly due to the implementation of amendments and corrections sent by some local authorities after the publication date of previous materials. (5) Figures include children looked after by local authority who are placed with own parents, who are placed in independent living, in residential employment, in secure units, in homes and hostels, in residential accommodation not subject to children's homes regulations, in other residential settings, in schools and finally children who are missing from placements and who are in other placements not listed. (6) SSDA903 only covered a third of children looked after by local authorities. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 4: Number of young persons aged 19 "in-touch" with local authority, percentage engaged in higher education who were looked after on 1 April 2002 aged 16 or over, in the years ending 31 March 2005 and 2006( 1, 2, 3, 4) 
			   2005  2006 
			   Number "in-touch  Percentage in higher education  Number "in-touch  Percentage in higher education 
			 England 4,600 7 4,900 7 
			 West Sussex 80 11 60 17 
			 Brighton and Hove 30 — 30 — 
			 East Sussex 30 — 30 — 
			 (1) Source, DfES, SSDA903 return which in 2005 and 2006 covered 'all' children looked after by local authorities. (2) Figures exclude children looked after under an agreed series of short-term placements. (3) Percentages are suppressed to preserve confidentiality if the numerator is between 1 and 5 inclusive or the denominator is between 1 and 10 inclusive and replaced by a long dash. (4) Young person engaged in higher education (i.e. studies beyond A level).

Nursery Providers

Fraser Kemp: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many mainstream nursery providers there were in the Sunderland city council area in  (a) 1997 and  (b) 2005.

Beverley Hughes: Information is not collected in the form requested.
	The available information on child care providers is shown in tables 1 and 2.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number( 1)  of registered child care providers for children under eight years of age by type—Sunderland local authority area—position at 31 March 2005 
			  Type of care  2005 
			 Full day care 50 
			 Sessional day care (2)— 
			 Child minders 300 
			 Out of school day care 30 
			 Crèche day care 20 
			 (1) Figures are rounded to the nearest 10 if under 100, and to the nearest 100 if over 100. (2) Indicates 1 or more, but less than 5.  Source: Ofsted 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Number( 1)  of day care providers for children under eight years of age by type of provider—Sunderland local authority area—position at 31 March 1997 
			  Type of provider  1997 
			 Day nurseries 20 
			 Playgroups and pre-schools 20 
			 Child minders 370 
			 Out of school clubs 10 
			 Holiday schemes 10 
			 (1) Figures are rounded to the nearest 10 if under 100, and to the nearest 100 if over 100.  Source: Children's Day Care Facilities Survey. 
		
	
	Local authorities were responsible for the registration and inspection of children's day care facilities until these responsibilities were transferred to Ofsted in September 2001. The figures for 2005 were derived from the Ofsted database of registered child care providers. The figures for 1997 were derived from the Children's Day Care Facilities Survey, which was discontinued in 2001. Therefore the figures for child care providers for 2005 are not directly comparable with the day care figures for 1997.
	With the introduction of the National Day Care Standards and the transfer of responsibilities for registration and inspection of child care providers from local authority social service departments to Ofsted in September 2001, child care places were classified according to the type of day care provided: full day care, sessional day care, child minder, out of school day care or crèche day care. Ofsted have produced figures based on this classification on a quarterly basis from March 2003. Their latest figures were published in their report "Registered Childcare Providers and Places, September 2006", which is available on their website:
	www.ofsted.gov.uk/.
	Up until March 2001, child care providers were classified according to the type of provider: day nurseries, playgroups and pre-schools, child minders, out of school clubs and holiday schemes. Figures based on this classification were published in a series of Statistical Bulletins, which are available from the Department's website:
	www.dfes.gov.uk/statistics.

School Leavers

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of pupils achieving two or more passes at A-level or equivalent left school for  (a) further education,  (b) higher education,  (c) unemployment,  (d) employment and  (e) other destinations in each year since 1997.

Jim Knight: Estimates derived from the Youth Cohort Study (YCS) are shown in the following table. The figures are based on the activity of young people in the third year following the completion of compulsory education holding a level 3 qualification (e.g. two or more A levels or equivalent) having been in full-time education in both the previous two years.
	
		
			  Activity at 18 for those holding level 3 qualifications having been in full-time education at 16 and 17 
			  Percentage 
			   1998  2000  2002  2004  2006 
			 Full-time higher education 56 56 55 59 60 
			 Full-time further education 14 13 11 10 10 
			 Employment 25 25 29 26 24 
			 Unemployed 3 3 2 1 3 
			 Other 2 2 4 4 3 
			 Total 100 100 100 100 100 
			  Source:  Youth Cohort Study for England and Wales Cohorts 8 to 12

Schools: Darlington

Alan Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many  (a) teachers,  (b) teaching assistants and  (c) support staff were employed in Darlington local education authority schools in each year since 1992.

Jim Knight: The following table provides the number of full-time equivalent teachers, teaching assistants and support staff employed in local authority maintained schools in Darlington local authority, January 1998 to 2006.
	Darlington local authority was created as a unitary authority with responsibilities for education on 1 April 1997. Prior to this date figures for Darlington were included in Durham local authority figures and are not available separately.
	
		
			  Full-time equivalent number of teachers, teaching assistants and support staff employed in maintained schools in Darlington and former Durham local authorities  January 1992 to 2006 
			   Darlington  Former Durham 
			  January  Teachers( 1)  Teaching assistants( 2)  Support staff( 2,3)  Teachers( 1)  Teaching assistants( 2)  Support staff( 2,3) 
			 1992 — — — 5,120 590 1,130 
			 1993 — — — 5,140 580 1,180 
			 1994 — — — 5,120 570 1,150 
			 1995 — — — 5,020 610 1,170 
			 1996 — — — 5,010 620 1,180 
			 1997 — — — 4,910 640 1,230 
			 1998 820 120 210 — — — 
			 1999 820 130 240 — — — 
			 2000 800 140 250 — — — 
			 2001 780 170 300 — — — 
			 2002 840 200 360 — — — 
			 2003 840 210 380 — — — 
			 2004 850 190 370 — — — 
			 2005 860 270 480 — — — 
			 2006 830 300 530 — — — 
			 (1) DfES annual survey of teachers in service and teacher vacancies (618g). (2)Annual School Census. (3 )Support staff figures include teaching assistants numbers.  Note: Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.

Schools: South West Region

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many  (a) rural and  (b) urban (i) primary and (ii) secondary schools in (1) Cornwall, (2) the south west and (3) England there were in each year since 1979.

Jim Knight: The readily available information is given in the following table. The figures are based on the 2004 ONS Urban and Rural classification and are only available on this basis back to 1999.
	
		
			  Maintained primary and secondary schools( 1: ) Number of schools by urban/rural classification( 2 ) Position in January each year: 1999 to 2006 
			   Number of schools 
			   Cornwall LA 
			   Primary  Secondary 
			   Rural( 3)  Urban( 4)  Total  Rural( 3)  Urban( 4)  Total 
			 1999 171 73 244 12 19 31 
			 2000 172 73 245 12 19 31 
			 2001 172 73 245 12 19 31 
			 2002 172 73 245 12 19 31 
			 2003 172 71 243 12 19 31 
			 2004 170 72 242 12 19 31 
			 2005 169 72 241 12 19 31 
			 2006 169 70 239 12 19 31 
		
	
	
		
			   Number of schools 
			   South west 
			   Primary  Secondary 
			   Rural( 3)  Urban( 4)  Unknown( 5)  Total  Rural( 3)  Urban( 4)  Total( 5) 
			 1999 983 1,020 2 2,005 95 240 335 
			 2000 985 1,014 0 1,999 95 240 335 
			 2001 984 1,008 0 1,992 96 237 333 
			 2002 983 1,008 0 1,991 96 237 333 
			 2003 980 1,005 0 1,985 95 235 330 
			 2004 978 1,003 0 1,981 95 234 329 
			 2005 977 997 0 1,974 92 233 325 
			 2006 975 979 0 1,954 89 231 320 
		
	
	
		
			   Number of schools 
			   England 
			   Primary  Secondary 
			   Rural( 3)  Urban( 4)  Unknown( 5)  Total  Rural( 3)  Urban( 4)  Total( 5) 
			 1999 5,292 12,936 6 18,234 536 3,024 3,560 
			 2000 5,292 12,866 0 18,158 536 3,014 3,550 
			 2001 5,287 12,782 0 18,069 534 2,947 3,481 
			 2002 5,279 12,706 0 17,985 532 2,925 3,457 
			 2003 5,267 12,594 0 17,861 530 2,906 3,436 
			 2004 5,260 12,502 0 17,762 529 2,880 3,409 
			 2005 5,249 12,393 0 17,642 526 2,859 3,385 
			 2006 5,251 12,253 0 17,504 524 2,843 3,367 
			 (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2 )Urban/rural classification for schools is based on the school's current postcode. (3 )Includes schools in the following classifications: Hamlet and Isolated Dwelling (sparse and less sparse), Town and Fringe (sparse and less sparse), Village (sparse and less sparse). (4 )Includes schools in Urban ? 10k (sparse and less sparse) classifications. (5 )Data required to establish the location of six primary schools in 1999 was missing or invalid.  Source:  School Census and Edubase(1) (1 )Schools have been classified as being in either an urban or rural area by matching their school postcode to the Rural and Urban Area Classification 2004 indicator held within the May 2006 National Statistics Postcode Directory. Areas are classified as urban or rural at the Census Output Area (COA) level, and postcodes are classified according to the status of the COA in which they are located.

Teaching Staff

Shona McIsaac: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many  (a) teachers,  (b) teaching assistants and  (c) support staff were employed in (i) North East Lincolnshire local education authority and (ii) North Lincolnshire local education authority in each year since 1997.

Jim Knight: The following table provides the number of full-time equivalent teachers, teaching assistants and support staff employed in local authority maintained schools in North East Lincolnshire and North Lincolnshire local authorities in each January from 1997 to 2006.
	
		
			  Full-time equivalent number of teachers( 1) , teaching assistants and support staff in North East Lincolnshire and North Lincolnshire local authorities, January 1997 to 2006 
			   North East Lincolnshire  North Lincolnshire 
			   Teachers( 2)  Teaching assistants( 3)  Support staff( 3,4)  Teachers( 2)  Teaching assistants( 3)  Support staff( 3,4) 
			 1997 1,370 220 450 1,290 180 400 
			 1998 1,300 240 490 1,240 200 420 
			 1999 1,310 260 540 1,290 240 480 
			 2000 1,380 310 610 1,290 270 520 
			 2001 1,360 460 750 1,340 330 630 
			 2002 1,450 520 900 1,300 430 710 
			 2003 1,480 570 970 1,280 450 770 
			 2004 1,450 650 1,060 1,340 510 830 
			 2005 1,420 630 1,110 1,350 550 880 
			 2006 1,410 690 1,170 1,390 600 970 
			 (1) Regular qualified and unqualified teachers (excluding occasionals).  (2) Source: Annual survey of teachers in service and teacher vacancies, 618g.  (3) Source: Annual School Census.  (4) Support staff numbers include teaching assistants.

Truancy

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of half days were missed due to unauthorised absence in maintained secondary schools in  (a) rural and  (b) non-rural areas in 2005-06; how many students accounted for days missed in each category for CETTS; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The figures for the proportion of half days missed due to unauthorised absence in maintained mainstream secondary schools in  (a) rural and  (b) non-rural areas in 2005-06 are given in the following tables:
	
		
			  Percentage of half days missed in maintained mainstream secondary schools( 1)  due to unauthorised absence( 2)  in 2005/06 
			   Percentage 
			 Rural areas 0.75 
			 Non-rural areas 1.28 
			 (1) Includes middle schools as deemed.  (2) Figures are provisional.   Note:  Schools have been allocated as being in either an urban or rural area by matching the school postcode to the Rural and Urban Area Classification 2004 indicator held within the May 2005 National Statistics Postcode Directory. 
		
	
	
		
			  Number( 1)  of pupils in maintained mainstream secondary schools( 2)  who missed at least one half day in 2005/06 
			   Number 
			 Rural areas 92,800 
			 Non-rural areas 687,800 
			 (1) Figures are given to the nearest hundred.  (2 )Includes middle schools as deemed.   Note:  Schools have been allocated as being in either an urban or rural area by matching the school postcode to the Rural and Urban Area Classification 2004 indicator held within the May 2005 National Statistics Postcode Directory. 
		
	
	Unauthorised absence is absence without leave from a teacher or other authorised representative of the school. This includes all unexplained or unjustified absences, such as lateness, holidays during term time not authorised by the school, absence where reason is not yet established and truancy.

Archaeological and Historic Sites

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many archaeological and historic sites in private ownership her Department has been notified of which have been  (a) seriously damaged and  (b) destroyed in the last 12 months.

David Lammy: The Department does not keep a record of this data. This information is recorded on a case by case basis at local government level as part of their Historic Environment Records. Two of the entries on the English Heritage Buildings at Risk Register have been demolished in the last 12 months. English Heritage is working on amending its database of Scheduled Monument Consents to capture unlicensed or unauthorised works to scheduled monuments.

Arts Participation

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what progress has been made on increasing the number of people attending and participating in the arts from priority groups; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: Final baseline data on the proportion of people attending and participating in the arts from priority groups was published on 14 December 2006. Progress on increasing these proportions will be monitored regularly with final assessment of achievement available in late 2008. My Department continues to work closely with Arts Council England and others on a broad range of policies and programmes to increase attendance and participation in the arts by the priority groups.

Departmental Finance

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the  (a) amount of public finance initiative credits allocated to her Department and  (b) related capital expenditure was in each year for which figures are available, broken down by project.

David Lammy: DCMS currently has 25 PFI projects, to which the Department has allocated credits totalling £354.5 million. These are broken down by project in the following table. Information about the capital expenditure for each project in each year is not held centrally. This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  £ million 
			  Authority  Project title   (a) DCMS credit allocation  (b) Related capital expenditure 
			 Bournemouth Borough Council New Central Library and Community Library ICT system 2000 6 14.1 
			 Brighton and Hove City Council(1) Jubilee Library Brighton 2000 0 11.9 
			 Sefton Borough Council Crosby Leisure Centre 2001 6.2 0.3 
			 Uttlesford District Council Uttlesford Sports and Leisure Centre 2002 5.8 0 
			 London Borough of Brent Willesden Sports Centre 2004 14.9 1.8 
			 London Borough of Croydon Ashburton Learning Village 2004 4.6 19.4 
			 London Borough of Lewisham Downham Lifestyles Centre 2005 12.7 4.9 
			 Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council Oldham Library and Lifelong Learning Centre 2004 13 0.5 
			 Penwith District Council Recreation West 2002 6.4 0.3 
			 Wolverhampton City Council North East Leisure Centre 2004 10.9 0.8 
			 Sheffield City Council Westfield School Swimming Pool 2004 6.1 46.4 
			 Borough of Telford and Wrekin Hadley Learning Centre and Jigsaw Project 2004 10.2 52.8 
			 South Tyneside Metropolitan Borough Council South Shields Info Store 2004 2.8 15.8 
			 Breckland Council Making Connections Leisure Project 2005 9.5 5.5 
			 Amber Valley Borough Council Amber Valley Quest for Leisure 2006 17.6 4.4 
			 Bristol City Council South Bristol Healthplex 2007 29.7 0 
			 Cambridgeshire County Council Historical Resource and Cultural Centre 2006 10.7 0 
			 Leeds City Council New Leaf Leisure Centres 2007 30 0 
			 Liverpool City Council Central Library and Archive Redevelopment 2006 49.3 0 
			 Newcastle City Council(2) New City Library and High Heaton Community Library/satellite Customer Service Centre 2006 and 2007 40.2 0 
			 Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale Joint Service Centres 2007 1.5 10.6 
			 Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council Sport and Leisure Facilities and Maltby Joint Service Centre Project 2006 16.4 21.6 
			 Shepway District Council Shepway Leisure PFI 2006 9.8 4.7 
			 Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council Joint Service Centre 2007 6.8 40.2 
			 Worcestershire County Council Worcester Library and  History Centre 2007 33.4 3.1 
			 Total   354.5 259.1 
			 (1 )DCMS took on lead responsibility for this project from what was the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. (2 )Newcastle has been allocated £40.2 million in total. £27 million was allocated in 2006 and £13.2 million was allocated in 2007.

Digital Broadcasting

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what her estimate is of the number of households that will qualify for assistance in switching over to digital television in  (a) Gateshead East and Washington West,  (b) the North East and  (c) England.

Shaun Woodward: The details are in the table.
	
		
			  Constituency  Households (defined as eligible benefit units) 
			 Berwick-upon-Tweed 9,000 
			 Bishop Auckland 14,000 
			 Blaydon 10,000 
			 Blyth Valley 11,000 
			 City of Durham 10,000 
			 Darlington 11,000 
			 Easington 14,000 
			 Gateshead East and Washington West 12,000 
			 Hartlepool 12,000 
			 Hexham 9,000 
			 Houghton and Washington East 12,000 
			 Jarrow 12,000 
			 Middlesbrough 13,000 
			 Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland 13,000 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne Central 10,000 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend 11,000 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne North 12,000 
			 North Durham 12,000 
			 North Tyneside 13,000 
			 North-West Durham 14,000 
			 Redcar 14,000 
			 Sedgefield 12,000 
			 South Shields 12,000 
			 Stockton North 11,000 
			 Stockton South 10,000 
			 Sunderland North 13,000 
			 Sunderland South 13,000 
			 Tyne Bridge 11,000 
			 Tynemouth 11,000 
			 Wansbeck 13,000 
			   
			 North East Government Office Region 354,000 
			 England 5,800,000 
			 1. Totals for Constituencies rounded to the nearest thousand. Totals for England, rounded to the nearest hundred-thousand. 2. Eligibility for help from the Digital Switchover Help Scheme will be by benefit unit rather than the whole household definition used by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) the Scottish Executive, the Welsh Assembly Government and the Northern Ireland Office to forecast future household growth. 3. The definition of a benefit unit is a couple and any dependent children. It excludes adults deemed to be non-dependents who, if eligible, will be able to claim assistance from the Help Scheme in their own right.

Digital Television

Philip Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of the number of households which will qualify for assistance in switching over to digital television in  (a) Ludlow constituency,  (b) Shropshire and  (c) the West Midlands.

Shaun Woodward: The details are in the table.
	
		
			  Constituency  Households (defined as eligible benefit units) 
			 Aldridge-Brownhills 11,000 
			 Birmingham, Edgbaston 10,000 
			 Birmingham, Erdington 13,000 
			 Birmingham, Hall Green 10,000 
			 Birmingham, Hodge Hill 10,000 
			 Birmingham, Ladywood 10,000 
			 Birmingham, Northfield 10,000 
			 Birmingham, Perry Barr 11,000 
			 Birmingham, Selly Oak 11,000 
			 Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath 12,000 
			 Birmingham, Yardley 9,000 
			 Bromsgrove 10,000 
			 Burton 11,000 
			 Cannock Chase 12,000 
			 Coventry, North East 12,000 
			 Coventry, North West 13,000 
			 Coventry, South 12,000 
			 Dudley, North 12,000 
			 Dudley, South 10,000 
			 Halesowen and Rowley Regis 11,000 
			 Hereford 12,000 
			 Leominster 12,000 
			 Lichfield 9,000 
			 Ludlow 10,000 
			 Meriden 11,000 
			 Mid Worcestershire 11,000 
			 Newcastle-under-Lyme 11,000 
			 North Shropshire 12,000 
			 North Warwickshire 11,000 
			 Nuneaton 11,000 
			 Redditch 8,000 
			 Rugby and Kenilworth 11,000 
			 Shrewsbury and Atcham 11,000 
			 Solihull 13,000 
			 South Staffordshire 10,000 
			 Stafford 10,000 
			 Staffordshire Moorlands 11,000 
			 Stoke-on-Trent, Central 11,000 
			 Stoke-on-Trent, North 11,000 
			 Stoke-on-Trent, South 14,000 
			 Stone 10,000 
			 Stourbridge 10,000 
			 Stratford-on-Avon 12,000 
			 Sutton Coldfield 10,000 
			 Tamworth 10,000 
			 Telford 10,000 
			 The Wrekin 11,000 
			 Walsall North 12,000 
			 Walsall South 10,000 
			 Warley 10,000 
			 Warwick and Leamington 12,000 
			 West Bromwich, East 11,000 
			 West Bromwich, West 12,000 
			 West Worcestershire 12,000 
			 Wolverhampton, North East 10,000 
			 Wolverhampton, South East 10,000 
			 Wolverhampton, South West 11,000 
			 Worcester 10,000 
			 Wyre Forest 12,000 
			 West Midlands Government Office Area (including Shropshire) 645,000 
			 Shropshire 59,000 
			 Leominster 12,000 
			 Lichfield 9,000 
			 Ludlow 10,000 
			 Meriden 11,000 
			 Mid Worcestershire 11,000 
			 Newcastle-under-Lyme 11,000 
			 North Shropshire 12,000 
			 North Warwickshire 11,000 
			 Nuneaton 11,000 
			 Redditch 8,000 
			 Rugby and Kenilworth 11,000 
			 Shrewsbury and Atcham 11,000 
			 Solihull 13,000 
			 South Staffordshire 10,000 
			 Stafford 10,000 
			 Staffordshire Moorlands 11,000 
			 Stoke-on-Trent, Central 11,000 
			 Stoke-on-Trent, North 11,000 
			 Stoke-on-Trent, South 14,000 
			 Stone 10,000 
			 Stourbridge 10,000 
			 Stratford-on-Avon 12,000 
			 Sutton Coldfield 10,000 
			 Tamworth 10,000 
			 Telford 10,000 
			 The Wrekin 11,000 
			 Walsall, North 12,000 
			 Walsall, South 10,000 
			 Warley 10,000 
			 Warwick and Leamington 12,000 
			 West Bromwich, East 11,000 
			 West Bromwich, West 12,000 
			 West Worcestershire 12,000 
			 Wolverhampton, North East 10,000 
			 Wolverhampton, South East 10,000 
			 Wolverhampton, South West 11,000 
			 Worcester 10,000 
			 Wyre Forest 12,000 
			 West Midlands Government Office Area (including Shropshire) 645,000 
			 Shropshire 59,000 
			  Notes: 1. Totals rounded to the nearest thousand. 2. Eligibility for help from the Digital Switchover Help Scheme will be by benefit unit rather than the whole household definition used by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLC) the Scottish Executive, the Welsh Assembly Government and the Northern Ireland Office to forecast future household growth. 3. The definition of a benefit unit is a couple and any dependent children. It excludes adults deemed to be non-dependents who, if eligible, will be able to claim assistance from the Help Scheme in their own right.

Historical Sites

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many historical sites were destroyed during construction projects in each year since May 1997.

David Lammy: The Department does not keep a record of this data. This information is recorded on a case by case basis at local government level as part of their Historic Environment Records. Two of the entries on the English Heritage Buildings at Risk Register have been demolished in the last 12 months. English Heritage is working on amending its database of Scheduled Monument Consents to capture unlicensed or unauthorised works to scheduled monuments. There were 33,500 decisions on applications for listed building consent in 2005-06.

Kensington Palace Gardens

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport to whom the land which belonged to Kensington Palace Gardens was sold; whether construction is permitted on the land; when it was originally acquired; and whether the relevant royal authorities were consulted on reintegrating the land into the Gardens estate.

Richard Caborn: The land at the Royal Garden Hotel was sold to the Imperial Tobacco Pension Fund in July 2005. The land was initially leased to the owner of the hotel but it was subsequently decided to transfer the freehold. This was sanctioned by the Land at Palace Avenue, Kensington (Acquisition of Freehold) Act 2002. The land was originally acquired by William III. Under the terms of the sale in 2005 no new buildings are allowed without prior consent in writing from the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government. The Royal Household were consulted over the sale of the land.

Museums and Galleries

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the baseline is for the target for increasing the number of people accessing museums and galleries collections from priority groups.

Richard Caborn: My Department published the final baseline data on 14 December 2006. The baseline figures for the proportion attending a museum or gallery during the previous 12 months have been set at the following for the priority group population:
	
		
			  Percentage 
			   Baseline figure 
			 Black and minority ethnic 35 
			 Limiting disability 32 
			 Lower socio-economic 28 
		
	
	The Department's PSA 3 target for museums and galleries is, by 2008, to increase each of the priority group baseline estimates by two percentage points.

Telephone Services

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps Ofcom is taking to inform the public of the cost of 0871 numbers.

Margaret Hodge: I have been asked to reply.
	The matter raised is the responsibility of the Regulator, the Office of Communications (Ofcom) which is accountable to Parliament rather than Ministers. Accordingly, I have asked the Chief Executive of Ofcom to reply directly to the hon. Member. Copies of the Chief Executive's letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Agriculture: Subsidies

Janet Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much rural payments subsidy was paid to Mr. F. Ainsworth of Rossendale; and what steps his Department is taking to recover that to which he was not entitled.

Barry Gardiner: Mr. Ainsworth has been a claimant under rural payments scheme. Recipients of payments to which they are not entitled are subject to the Rural Payments Agency recovery procedures.

Animal Culls

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what culls have been conducted by his Department since May 1997; what  (a) costs were involved,  (b) compensation was paid and  (c) number of animals killed in each case.

Ben Bradshaw: The information requested is not collected centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Information on Defra's disease surveillance and control policies and activities is available on the Department's website at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/diseases/default.htm.

Badger Culling

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when experiments on controlling cattle TB by badger culling were first begun by his Department; how many badgers have been culled to date; and what the cost of such culls has been.

Ben Bradshaw: The only experiment run by Defra or MAFF is the randomised badger culling trial (RBCT), which began in 1998. A total of 10,957 badgers were culled during the trial. Culling operations ended in October 2005, with some surveying work continuing into 2006. The Independent Scientific Group on Cattle TB, which oversaw the trial, is now working through an analysis of the data for its final report which is due in 2007.
	The RBCT has cost £48 million, which includes the costs of the field trial, analysis and audit.
	Badger culling operations prior to the RBCT were badger control strategies—not experiments. Further information on the RBCT, and a history of badger controls, is available on the Defra website at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/tb/abouttb/badgers.htm.

Bees

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many bee-keeping inspectors are employed by his Department; what assessment he has made of their functions; and if he will make a statement about their future.

Barry Gardiner: holding answer 18 December 2006
	The National Bee Unit (NBU), part of the Central Science Laboratory, delivers the bee health programme on behalf of Defra and the Welsh Assembly Government. Within the NBU, there are eight regional bee inspectors and approximately 36 seasonal bee inspectors led by a national bee inspector. They carry out a targeted apiary inspection programme together with an extensive series of training events for bee keepers.
	Work is under way, in consultation with stakeholders, to develop a bee health strategy. This exercise includes reviewing the current programme to determine its effectiveness and assessing future options for achieving our objectives.

Biosecurity

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much his Department has spent on initiatives to educate  (a) farmers and  (b) vets to recognise the clinical signs of biosecurity threats and infectious diseases in livestock in each year since 2000.

Ben Bradshaw: The information requested is not collected centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, as an example, over £500,000 has been spent over the last 18 months raising awareness of the symptoms of avian influenza, promoting the Great Britain poultry register and informing bird keepers of the appropriate biosecurity measures. The messages used were developed with interested parties. This process is continuing with other diseases such as bluetongue, classical swine fever and foot and mouth disease.
	Good biosecurity is a vital part of keeping new disease away from animals. It also helps to improve farm efficiency, protect neighbouring farms and the countryside.
	Further information, including the current Defra biosecurity guidance, is available on the Department's website at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/diseases/control/biosecurity/index.htm.

Biosecurity

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to detect and identify pathogens that pose threats to livestock in the United Kingdom.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department undertakes a wide range of surveillance activities to detect and identify pathogens that pose threats to livestock in the United Kingdom.
	The International Disease Surveillance Team monitors the occurrence of major animal disease outbreaks worldwide as an early warning to assess the risk these events may pose to the UK. Our assessments and reports aim to raise awareness that animal disease outbreaks occur regularly around the world. We publish our assessments and routine summary reports on the Defra website or in the Veterinary Record. Details of this work can be found at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/diseases/monitoring/index.htm
	Due to increased international concern about the spread of avian influenza, increased targeted surveillance is being undertaken. This includes enhancing the UK wild bird survey, investigating the causes of unusually high mortality events in wild birds and a national survey for avian influenza viruses of subtypes H5 and H7 in domestic poultry. Further information can be found on the Defra website at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/diseases/notifiable/disease/ai/wildbirds/survey.htm#2
	Defra continues to work closely with Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs to prevent illegal imports entering the UK and causing a disease outbreak. This includes effective enforcement, targeted risk-based inspections and raising public awareness. More information can be found on the Defra website at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/illegali
	A surveillance programme is also undertaken by the Veterinary Laboratories Agency to provide Defra and other interested parties with a targeted assessment of the current disease status of farmed livestock and birds in England and Wales (disease information in Scotland is provided by the Scottish Agricultural Colleges Veterinary Science Division) and to warn of potential risks from changing disease trends or new diseases. It also monitors any welfare issues resulting from changes in husbandry practice or the emergence of new diseases. The project also provides information which assists in supporting declarations of Great Britain-wide clearance for exotic non-notifiable diseases. The principal outputs of this programme are a series of disease surveillance reports which are published on the Defra website at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/diseases/surveillance reports/index.htm
	The Department is working closely with devolved Administrations to implement the UK Veterinary Surveillance Strategy which aims to:
	(i) Improve our network of surveillance partners
	(ii) Improve prioritisation to ensure that surveillance activity is targeted effectively, based on risk assessment
	(iii) Using an innovative IT system (RADAR) to help identify, analyse and track animal disease-related threats more rapidly
	(iv) Improve data sharing and data quality.
	Further information on this is available on the Defra website at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/diseases/vetsurveillance/index.htm.

Biosecurity

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether there is a national response plan in the event of attack on the United Kingdom food supply chain.

Barry Gardiner: Defra participates fully in the central Government programme to improve civil contingency planning, especially in areas relating to our departmental responsibilities. This includes planning in relation to disruptions to the UK food chain.

Bovine Tuberculosis

Oliver Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many false positive results were obtained from tests for bovine tuberculosis in  (a) 2004,  (b) 2005 and  (c) in the first six months of 2006.

Ben Bradshaw: For the Great Britain routine herd testing programme for bovine tuberculosis (bTB), the Government uses the single intradermal comparative cervical tuberculin (SICCT) test (commonly known as the "skin test"). For reasons outlined, it is not possible to give a precise figure for the number of false positive results obtained from these bTB tests.
	When the skin test is applied to cattle in bTB-free herds in Great Britain, there is less than a one in 1,000 chance that a non-infected animal will be wrongly classified as a reactor. This is known as the test's false positive rate. An alternative way of defining this is to say that the skin test has a specificity in excess of 99.9 per cent. Although the probability of getting at least one false positive result increases with the size of the herd being tested, it would be extremely rare to find more than one false positive in a herd.
	It is important to bear in mind that failure to confirm the disease by post-mortem examination at the slaughterhouse, or by culturing the causative bacterium in the laboratory, does not mean that the animal was not infected with bTB. In the early stages of this infectious disease, it is not always possible to see lesions with the naked eye and, due to the fastidious nature of the organism, it is not possible to culture it from tissue samples in every case. Therefore, it is not correct to consider all skin test reactors that fail to disclose disease in the slaughterhouse or in the laboratory as false positives. The ease with which lesions of bTB can be detected at slaughter depends on the stage of infection, with lesions being harder to find in the early stages of bTB (that is, when most animals are detected using the skin test).
	The following table shows, for 2004, 2005 and the first six months of 2006, the total number of test reactors slaughtered and the number of such reactors that had demonstrable evidence of infection at post-mortem examination and/or bacteriological culture:
	
		
			   Total number of reactor( 1)  cattle slaughtered under TB control measures in Great Britain  Number of "confirmed" reactors  Number of "unconfirmed" reactors 
			 2006 (1st half) 10,109 3,913 6,196 
			 2005 25,755 8,657 17,098 
			 2004 19,975 6,422 13,553 
			 (1) Reactors, inconclusive reactors and direct contacts.

BSE

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he expects to make a statement on whether the national flock shows evidence of BSE.

Ben Bradshaw: The Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA) has tested all samples from sheep that were diagnosed as being positive for scrapie, from 1998 to the present time, for the possible presence of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE). This is nearly 3,000 samples and all have been negative for BSE.
	Recently, in light of the testing performed by the VLA, the Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee's Sheep Subgroup discussed the current likelihood of BSE being present in the national sheep flock. They concluded that:
	"the prevalence of BSE in the UK sheep population is most likely to be zero, or very low if present at all".
	A draft of the Subgroup's statement is available at:
	http://www.seac.gov.uk/papers/95-2.pdf.
	The statement was discussed at a recent meeting of the main Committee on 7 December 2006 and, although they recommended some minor changes to the text, the main conclusions in the report were ratified by the Committee.

Christmas Trees

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate his Department has made of the number of Christmas trees purchased in England that are  (a) UK grown and  (b) imported in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Barry Gardiner: The following table provides details of Christmas trees sold in the UK which are imported and UK grown for each year from 1997 to 2005.
	
		
			  Number of Christmas trees sold in the UK which are imported and UK grown 
			  Million 
			   Imports  UK grown  Total sold 
			 1997 0.4 5.0 5.4 
			 1998 0.4 5.3 5.7 
			 1999 0.4 6.0 6.4 
			 2000 0.3 6.6 6.9 
			 2001 0.5 6.2 6.7 
			 2002 0.4 6.5 6.9 
			 2003 0.6 7.5 8.1 
			 2004 0.6 8.0 8.6 
			 2005 0.5 8.0 8.5 
			  Note: Data prepared by Trade statistics, Agricultural Statistics and Analysis Division, DEFRA  Sources: Imports—H M Revenue and Customs UK grown—British Christmas Tree Growers Association 
		
	
	UK grown sales are compiled by the British Christmas Tree Growers Association and are based on the best available information and intelligence sourced from the industry. Imports of Christmas trees are as recorded in the Official Overseas Trade Statistics.
	The British Christmas Tree Growers Association forecast sales for 2006 of 7.6 million UK grown trees. The majority of imports occur in the latter part of the year, and consequently statistics on imports for 2006 are not yet available.

Clean Neighbourhood and Environment Act

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many penalty fines have been imposed on local councils in North Yorkshire under the provisions of the Clean Neighbourhood and Environment Act 2005.

Ben Bradshaw: The fixed penalty notice provisions contained within the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 were commenced in April 2006. Details on the number of fixed penalty notice's issued between April 2006 and March 2007 will be collected from local authorities in July 2007. This information will then be published in the autumn.

Competition Commission

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he last discussed the relationship between supermarkets and food producers with the Competition Commission.

Barry Gardiner: There have been no discussions between the Secretary of State and the Competition Commission about the relationship between supermarkets and food producers. However, Lord Rooker wrote to the Competition Commission on 2 June to draw attention to matters that we believe they should look at during their investigation into the grocery market. These include the impact of supermarket buyer power on the long-term viability of suppliers and producers in the UK, and the effectiveness of the supermarket code of practice. A copy of the letter can be found on the Defra website at:
	www.defra.gov.uk/foodrin/compete/pdf/rooker-compcomm-letter060613.pdf

Departmental Property

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the timetable is for the relocation and closure of the offices of his Department located at Epsom Road, Merrow, Guildford; what procedures his Department will follow on the disposal or sale of land where the offices are located; and if he will make a statement.

Barry Gardiner: The DEFRA Management Board agreed on 16 November that the Guildford site should be disposed of with a target date of December 2007 for receipt of disposal proceeds and that the business units (including IBM) should relocate to identified locations no later than autumn 2007.
	DEFRA undertakes the disposal of surplus land, buildings and residential properties in accordance with Chapter 24 of HM Treasury Government Accounting 2000 (Amendment 4/05), following the guidelines contained in Annex 24.2. DEFRA also takes full account of other guidance issued by the Office of Government Commerce (OGC), including their most recent Guide for the Disposal of Surplus Property (November 2005).

Departmental Staff

Michael Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the effective date is for annual pay awards to his Department's staff; and what the actual implementation date has been in each of the last five years.

Barry Gardiner: holding answer 12 December 2006
	For staff in the senior civil service, the effective date for the annual pay award is 1 April. In each of the last five years the award has been implemented in June salaries. In 2006, the award was applied in two stages with an effective date of 1 April and 1 November. The first stage was implemented in June and the second in November salaries.
	For staff below the senior civil service cover by core-Defra pay arrangements (core-Defra, State Veterinary Service, Pesticides Safety Directorate, Veterinary Medicines Directorate, Marine Fisheries Agency and Government Decontamination Service), the effective date for the annual pay award is 1 July. The month in which the award has been implemented in each of the last five years is as follows:
	
		
			   Month 
			 2002 December 
			 2003 August 
			 2004 July 
			 2005 July 
			 2006 December

Electric Shock Collars

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) examined into the animal welfare issues related to the operation of electric shock collars on (i) dogs and (ii) other animals.

Ben Bradshaw: Defra has not yet commissioned any research into the animal welfare issues related to the operation of electric shock collars on dogs, though we are currently considering a proposal to assess the effect of specific electronic pet training aids (excluding electronic dog fences) on the welfare of dogs.
	We have examined the available relevant peer reviewed research on the welfare effects of electric shock collars on dogs. We have not examined or commissioned research into animal welfare issues related to the operation of electric shock collars on other animals.
	I also refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 6 December 2006,  Official Report, column 420W.

Fallen Stock

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made to date of the total cost to the farming industry of implementing fallen stock disposal regulations.

Ben Bradshaw: Assuming 100 per cent. compliance with the regulations, the Department has estimated that the cost of collection and disposal of all fallen stock in the UK is just over £50 million per year. However, about £30 million of that cost is accounted for by arrangements for testing of cattle for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), and the costs are borne by the Government.
	The voluntary National Fallen Stock Scheme (NFSS) also benefits from £20 million of Government funding over four years to November 2008, to assist with the costs to the industry of complying with the regulations. From November 2004 to when the scheme started to November 2006, £11.5 million of government funding had been given, with those farmers who were members contributing just over £14 million.
	However, it should be recognised that many livestock producers were already disposing of their fallen stock by means other than burial before the regulations came into force. In such cases implementing the regulations did not impose an additional cost.

Farms

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education and Skills on implementing his pledge to enable each school child to visit a farm.

Barry Gardiner: The Year of Food and Farming is an industry-led initiative supported by Defra, the Department for Education and Skills and the Department of Health. The Year aims to reconnect children and young people with food, farming and the countryside. It will run through the academic year from September 2007 to July 2008. A series of national, regional and local events, and learning resources will be supplemented by a wide range of other activities for children to participate in, including visits to food and farm businesses.
	My officials and I have worked closely with our counterparts at the Department for Education and Skills, and with other stakeholders, in developing this initiative.

Flood Defences: North Yorkshire

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the implications are for flood defences in North Yorkshire of the recent changes to his Department's allocation of funds to the Environment Agency.

Ian Pearson: Defra funds most of the Environment Agency's (EA) flood-related work and grant aids individual capital improvement projects undertaken by local authorities and, in low-lying areas, internal drainage boards. The programme to manage risk is driven by these operating authorities; Defra does not build defences, nor direct the authorities on what specific projects to undertake.
	Local authority expenditure on flood risk management (including levies to the EA and internal drainage boards) is largely supported by the local government funding mechanisms operated by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG).
	The reduction in funding to the EA applies only to non-capital spend and it is re-prioritising its spend to minimise the impact on flood risk management. Local authorities are not affected and neither are projects to manage coastal erosion risk.
	Within Yorkshire, the EA has undertaken significant works within the Ouse catchment area to repair and improve flood defences since the floods of autumn 2000. These include repairs to defences in York and Selby (including the Foss Barrier) totalling in excess of £1 million and improvements to flood defences in Selby, due to be completed in 2008 at a cost of some £14 million.

Gamebird Farms

Elliot Morley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  whether his Department inspects intensive gamebird farms; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  whether his Department has instigated any prosecutions of intensive gamebird farms in the last five years; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  whether the duty of care under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 will apply to intensively reared gamebirds;
	(4)  whether he is planning to introduce regulations on intensive rearing of gamebirds;
	(5)  what regulations apply to the intensive rearing of game birds;
	(6)  what stocking densities apply to the intensive rearing of game birds; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 19 December 2006
	There is no provision for routine inspection of gamebird farms at present.
	There have been no prosecutions of intensive gamebird farms by DEFRA in the last five years.
	The Animal Welfare Act 2006, which will come into force in April 2007, introduces a duty on people responsible for an animal to take such steps as are reasonable to ensure its welfare. This new power will apply to gamebirds reared for sporting shooting prior to their release, and to gamebirds reared for meat.
	We have no plans to introduce regulations for the rearing of gamebirds. We do, however, propose to use powers under the Animal Welfare Act to produce a Code of Practice, which will provide guidance on accommodation and management methods, including aggression reduction. Specifically on the issue of raised laying units, before considering regulation or a ban on the system, I believe that it is important I obtain an independent view on this method of housing gamebirds. To that end, the Farm Animal Welfare Council's study of the system and its report will be fundamental in informing my decision on their future. As you are aware, I have particular concerns surrounding the use of raised laying units and will not hesitate to take appropriate action if, following the report, I believe that the bird's welfare is compromised. Any code would be subject to public consultation and endorsement by Parliament.
	At present, all animals, including gamebirds reared for sporting purposes are covered by the Protection of Animals Act 1911. Under this Act it is an offence to ill-treat or cause unnecessary suffering to any captive or domestic animal. In addition, gamebirds reared for slaughter for food would be covered by the Welfare of Farmed Animals Regulations.
	There are no specific stocking densities of gamebirds required under present law.

Gershon Review

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much has been spent by his Department and its associated public bodies in order to achieve Gershon efficiency savings; whether these costs have been included in reports of headline efficiency savings; and if he will make a statement.

Barry Gardiner: Sir Peter Gershon's independent report into public sector efficiency did not ask Departments to record efficiencies net of upfront investment costs and Defra has followed this advice.
	Defra does not hold information centrally on the total cost of achieving its Gershon efficiency gains. Such information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Gershon Review

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much in efficiency savings has been made in his Department and its associated public bodies as a result of the Gershon Review; and if he will make a statement.

Barry Gardiner: Verified figures for efficiency savings made by Defra to the end of quarter 2 2006-07 are given in the Department's autumn performance report published on 15 December 2006.

Global Warming

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much the Department has spent on research into global warming in 2005-06; and on what projects money has been spent.

Ian Pearson: Defra's climate change science research programme analyses the risk of human-induced climate change and assesses its potential impacts and means of adaptation and mitigation. Total spending on climate science research in 2005-06 was £15.7 million. This included over £11 million for the Hadley Centre (part of the Meteorological Office) and around £0.7 million funding for the UK Climate Impacts Programme (www.ukcip.org.uk).
	Defra also commissions research on energy efficiency and energy use. The expenditure on research related to climate change and energy was over £1 million in 2005-06.
	The following table shows the research programme's spending for the financial year 2005-06.
	
		
			  Research  Cost (£) 
			 Observation and underpinning science of climate change 13,314,670 
			 Assessing the impact of climate change 1,295,393 
			 Identification of mitigation options 1,134,261 
			 Energy efficiency and energy use 1,081,935 
		
	
	Details of all Defra research projects on climate change and energy can be found at:
	http://www2.defra.gov.uk/research/project_data/projects.asp?SCOPE=0&M=PSA&V=EP%3A030
	and
	http://www2.defra.gov.uk/research/project_data/projects.asp?SCOPE=0&M=PSA&V=PI%3A070F

Marine Fisheries Agency

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the measures taken by the Marine Fisheries Agency to manage UK fishing fleet capacity referred to on page 177 of his Department's annual report were; what the cost of the measures has been to date; what measure is used of their effectiveness; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The Marine Fisheries Agency delivers a wide range of services in support of fisheries management and environmental conservation. One of its functions is to manage fishing fleet capacity on behalf of Defra. The main measures and activities undertaken by the agency in this area include:
	i. Licensing of all England and Wales fishing vessels to control the capacity and fishing activity.
	ii. Implementation of rules and limitations on fishing fleet capacity and regimes based on:
	reliable and accurate data;
	effective enforcement.
	iii. Provision of detailed guidance to industry on the application of days at sea arrangements, for example, cod and sole.
	The un-aggregated costs to the agency of these measures could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	The agency's measures of effectiveness in relation to its activities refer to the efficiency in fulfilling its obligations for issuing fishing vessel licences, recovery scheme entitlements, processing transfers of "days" in the two recovery areas and monthly entries and exits to the fleet to ensure no increase in overall capacity.

Meat Imports

James Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the  (a) volume and  (b) value of each meat product imported from (i) Argentina, (ii) Botswana, (iii) Brazil, (iv) China, (v) Democratic Republic of Congo, (vi) Ecuador, (vii) Egypt, (viii) Israel, (ix) Palestinian Autonomous Territories, (x) Russia, (xi) South Africa, (xii) Turkey and (xiii) Vietnam was in each of the last five years; and what the (A) volume and (B) value of such imports has been in 2006-07 in each case.

Barry Gardiner: The following table provides details of the imports of meat and meat products from the specified countries as recorded in the official overseas trade statistics for the period 2001 to September 2006.
	
		
			  UK imports of meat and meat products from selected countries for 2001 to September 2006 
			 2001  2002  2003 
			  Description  Type  Cut  £000  Tonnes  £000  Tonnes  £000  Tonnes 
			 Brazil Beef Meat and offal (other than liver) 71,235 52,062 66,055 52,573 57,616 53,541 
			   Boneless 35,085 21,907 31,684 19,089 52,855 32,058 
			   Edible offal 115 133 129 144 46 64 
			   Carcases and half carcases — — — — — — 
			   Other cuts with bone in   
			  Chicken Boneless 32,961 18,929 19,109 14,222 21,679 16,761 
			   Meat, meat offal or blood 14,681 7,071 15,127 8,512 17,909 9,901 
			   Whole 635 880 727 1,260 945 1,759 
			   Bone in 19 25 26 24 112 95 
			  Other (not stated elsewhere Meat — — 33,710 28,647 12,739 11,927 
			   Edible offal — — 132 120 — — 
			   Meat, meat offal or blood 15 7 — — — — 
			  Turkey Meat, meat offal or blood 7,287 4,353 8,619 7,618 12,310 10,563 
			   Boneless 232 123 30 24 215 142 
			  Sheep and goat Edible offal — — — — — — 
			  Lamb Carcases and half carcases — — — — — — 
			  Sheep Bone in 36 17 — — — — 
			  Poultry Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — 4 1 
			  
			 Argentina Beef Boneless 3,476 1,138 31,995 18,269 21,796 9,372 
			   Meat and offal (other than liver) 6,915 4,797 7,207 5,262 7,139 5,881 
			   Edible offal 255 154 227 182 128 127 
			   Other cuts with bone in — — — — — — 
			  Chicken Boneless 311 166 736 513 2,057 1,393 
			   Whole — — — — — — 
			   Bone in 5 2   383 376 
			   Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — — — 
			  Lamb Carcases and half carcases   30 19 1,820 1,123 
			   Boneless 280 111 314 142 297 178 
			  Sheep Bone in 19 5 155 83 105 62 
			   Boneless 3 3 78 39 — — 
			   Meat, meat offal or blood 53 8 183 30 — — 
			  Sheep and goat Edible offal 52 34 10 10 6 2 
			  Other (not stated elsewhere Meat — — 84 66 — — 
			   Edible offal — — 29 24 — — 
			  Turkey Meat, meat offal or blood — — 15 12 — — 
			  
			 Botswana Beef Boneless 29,984 10,983 17,251 5,495 16,091 5,202 
			   Meat and offal (other than liver 520 182 1,178 583 319 130 
			  
			 Israel Turkey Meat, meat offal or blood 1,709 978 1,168 777 1,094 566 
			   Boneless — — — — 58 35 
			   Whole 6 5 2 2 18 13 
			   Edible offal 2 2 1 1 — — 
			   Bone in 2 2 — — 1 1 
			  Chicken Meat, meat offal or blood 32 9 41 11 81 24 
			   Bone in 10 6 59 31 31 13 
			   Whole 3 2 36 21 — — 
			   Boneless 2 1 33 13   
			   Edible offal — — — — — — 
			  Poultry Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — 61 14 
			  Sausages and similar products Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — 29 9 
			  Beef Edible offal 5 1 — — — — 
			  Other (not stated elsewhere Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — — — 
			  
			 South Africa Beef Meat and offal (other than liver) 446 287 95 67 — — 
			   Boneless 79 29 — — — — 
			  Game (not stated elsewhere Meat and edible meat offal 22 2 115 14 9 1 
			  Other (not stated elsewhere Meat and edible meat offal — — 5 1 17 14 
			  Chicken Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — — — 
			  Poultry Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — — — 
			  
			 China Chicken Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — — — 
			  Rabbit Meat and edible meat offal 89 72  — — — 
			  Sheep Bone in — — 30 11 — — 
			   Boneless — — 8 2 — — 
			  Poultry Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — — — 
			  Lamb Boneless — — — — — — 
			  
			 Turkey Beef Meat and offal (other than liver) — — — — — — 
			  Chicken Boneless 16 9 — — — — 
			  Turkey Bone in 14 7 — — — — 
			  Pig Meat — — — — — — 
			  Goose Whole 6 3 — — — — 
			  Duck Whole 1 1 — — — — 
			  Sheep Meat, meat offal or blood 1 1 — — — — 
			  
			 Russia Pig Hams, shoulders and cuts, bone in 23 23 — — — — 
			  
			 Vietnam Frogs' legs Meat and edible meat offal — — 2 1 10 4 
			  Poultry Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — — — 
			  
			 Egypt Chicken Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — 0 0 
			   Boneless — — — — 0 0 
		
	
	
		
			 2004  2005  January to September 2006 
			  Brazil  Beef  Cut  £000  Tonnes  £000  Tonnes  £000  Tonnes 
			   Meat and offal (other than liver) 72,984 58,677 73,581 53,237 59,651 38,293 
			   Boneless 60,783 34,588 59,134 32,120 52,767 22,630 
			   Edible offal 324 331 323 339 111 109 
			   Carcases and half carcases 22 23 32 23 — — 
			   Other cuts with bone in — — 93 33   
			  Chicken Boneless 46,060 34,891 59,759 48,194 22,846 15,849 
			   Meat, meat offal or blood 9,445 6,148 14,087 10,224 9,155 6,159 
			   Whole 2,674 4,674 1,902 2,822 1,105 1,837 
			   Bone in 7 12 — — — — 
			  Other (not stated elsewhere Meat — — — — 2,500 2,135 
			   Edible offal — — — — — — 
			   Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — — — 
			  Turkey Meat, meat offal or blood 5,451 4,233 1,063 863 101 72 
			   Boneless 452 324 220 144 83 69 
			  Sheep and goat Edible offal 73 63 — — — — 
			  Lamb Carcases and half carcases 30 17 14 17 — — 
			  Sheep Bone in — — — — — — 
			  Poultry Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — 2 1 
			  Sausages and similar products Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — — — 
			  
			 Argentina Beef Boneless 24,188 8,641 28,413 9,226 14,252 3,666 
			   Meat and offal (other than liver) 11,259 8,931 10,164 7,309 5,835 3,533 
			   Edible offal 165 169 376 265 98 57 
			   Other cuts with bone in — — 16 11 — — 
			  Chicken Boneless 1,306 1,015 1,782 1,276 1,134 855 
			   Whole 148 249 350 485 89 136 
			   Bone in 67 66 — — — — 
			   Meat, meat offal or blood 24 14 — — 30 24 
			  Lamb Carcases and half carcases 2,285 1,496 2,012 1,233 337 227 
			   Boneless 297 180 1,066 515 1,100 683 
			  Sheep Bone in 54 42 69 34 519 252 
			   Boneless 36 24 — — — — 
			   Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — — — 
			  Sheep and goat Edible offal 3 8 65 107 57 76 
			  Other (not stated elsewhere Meat — — — — — — 
			   Edible offal — — — — — — 
			  Turkey Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — — — 
			  
			 Botswana Beef Boneless 15,422 4,848 11,351 3,461 4,587 1,293 
			   Meat and offal (other than liver 506 285 376 201 367 178 
			  
			 Israel Turkey Meat, meat offal or blood 584 278 107 32 36 14 
			   Boneless 180 97 — — — — 
			   Whole 1 1 — — — — 
			   Edible offal 1 1 — — — — 
			   Bone in — — — — — — 
			  Chicken Meat, meat offal or blood 69 20 53 15 24 5 
			   Bone in 45 17 22 9 25 7 
			   Whole — — — — — — 
			   Boneless — — — — — — 
			   Edible offal 1 0 — — — — 
			  Poultry Meat, meat offal or blood 59 7 42 3 60 4 
			  Sausages and similar products Meat, meat offal or blood 23 7 11 3 — — 
			  Beef Edible offal — — — — — — 
			  Other (not stated elsewhere Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — 2 1 
			  
			 South Africa Beef Meat and offal (other than liver) 519 388 399 254 197 118 
			   Boneless — — — — — — 
			  Game (not stated elsewhere Meat and edible meat offal 95 31 69 6 58 15 
			  Other (not stated elsewhere Meat and edible meat offal 65 15 — — — — 
			  Chicken Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — 42 19 
			  Poultry Meat, meat offal or blood 7 4 — — — — 
			  
			 China Chicken Meat, meat offal or blood — — 160 109 30 19 
			  Rabbit Meat and edible meat offal — — — — — — 
			  Sheep Bone in — — 73 20 — — 
			   Boneless — — — — — — 
			  Poultry Meat, meat offal or blood — — 62 18 — — 
			  Lamb Boneless — — 20 4 30 13 
			  
			 Turkey Beef Meat and offal (other than liver) 155 160 — — — — 
			  Chicken Boneless 38 13 — — — — 
			  Turkey Bone in — — — — — — 
			  Pig Meat — — 9 6 — — 
			  Goose Whole — — — — — — 
			  Duck Whole — — — — — — 
			  Sheep Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — — — 
			  
			 Russia Pig Hams, shoulders and cuts, bone in — — — — — — 
			  
			 Vietnam Frogs' legs Meat and edible meat offal — — 23 9 — — 
			  Poultry Meat, meat offal or blood 9 2 — — — — 
			  
			 Egypt Chicken Meat, meat offal or blood — — — — — — 
			   Boneless — — — — — — 
			 0 = Quantity less than half the unit shown — = Nil values 
		
	
	It should be noted that imports of certain meats from many of these countries are not permitted. The following provides details of these import restrictions:
	
		
			 Brazil Bone in beef meat (inc carcases and half carcases) 
			 Brazil Sheep meat, inc lamb and goat meat 
			 Argentina Sheep and goat meat/lamb (only from May 2002) 
			 Israel Beef 
			 China Sheep meat inc lamb 
			 Turkey Beef, pig meat, sheep meat 
			 Russia Pig meat 
			 Turkey All poultry meat 
			 Vietnam All poultry meat 
			 Egypt All poultry meat 
			 China All poultry meat was prohibited from China in 2004 
		
	
	Where imports are not permitted we believe that any imports recorded in the overseas trade statistics represent consignments which have been exported from GB, rejected and returned or goods where the incorrect customs code have been entered.
	There was no recorded trade in meat and meat products during this period for the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ecuador or Occupied Palestinian Territory. The Occupied Palestinian Territory is the recognised designation for the Palestinian region used by HMRC.

Organic Wine

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate his Department has made of the  (a) value,  (b) output and  (c) growth rate of the UK organic wine industry in each year since 2000; and if he will make a statement.

Barry Gardiner: Due to technical labelling rules, the EC Regulations do not actually recognise Organic Wine as such but only Wine Produced from Organically Grown Grapes. There is currently discussion at a European level in relation to amending these rules.
	Defra has made no assessment of the value, output and growth rate of vineyards under organic production. Statistics provided to Defra by the Organic Certification Bodies show only two hectares of vineyards currently under organic production in the UK, but this is likely to be an underestimate.
	If EU discussions lead to the labelling of 'organic wine' it may encourage producers to convert and further exploit this niche as part of the overall growth of the UK wine industry.

Public Opinion Research

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much his Department has spent on commissioning public opinion research in each of the last five years.

Barry Gardiner: Defra's Communications Directorate commissions an annual public opinion survey on Defra and its policy areas. Surveys conducted since the Department's creation in 2001 are as follows:
	
		
			  Date  Cost (£) 
			 February 2002 42,000 
			 April 2004 14,950 
			 October 2005 26,000 
			 June 2006 51,500

REACH Regulations

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations his Department has received on the application of Registration, Education and Authorisation of Chemicals (REACH) regulations to  (a) trichloroethylene,  (b) chromium,  (c) nickel,  (d) beryllium,  (e) kevlar,  (f) cadmium,  (g) biocides used in the manufacture of high performance materials and  (h) other specialist substances; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: The Department has received a wide range of representations from industry, non-governmental organisations and the public on many aspects of REACH. However, since the formal adoption of the Council Common Position on REACH in June 2006, and during the subsequent course of the European Parliament's Second Reading process, I am not aware of any specific representations on the application of REACH to the substances and products listed by my hon. Friend.
	Trichloroethylene, chromium, nickel, and cadmium are strictly controlled by existing legislation, and REACH will take a similar approach. There is a separate regulatory regime for biocides under the EU Biocidal Products Directive (98/8/EC), and these substances will be regarded as already registered for the purposes of REACH.

Retirement Age

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 4 December 2006,  Official Report, columns 189-90W, on the retirement age, what his Department's policy is on the application of the national default retirement age to staff below the Senior Civil Service.

Barry Gardiner: With the new Age Legislation coming into force in October 2006, Defra no longer has a set retirement age for employees below the senior civil service.

Re-use Credits

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will make a statement on the payment of re-use credits by local authorities following the guidance issued to local authorities by his Department in April.

Ben Bradshaw: The Recycling Credits scheme was reformed through section 49 of the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 (CNEA). Changes to the Scheme increase the flexibility of payments from waste disposal authorities (WDAs) to waste collection authorities (WCAs) in two-tier areas by giving them the option to jointly agree alternative arrangements. These changes have been in effect since April 2006. The CNEA also clarified that recycling credits can be paid for reuse activity and that reuse should be treated in the same way as recycling for the purposes of the scheme.
	Local authorities (LAs) have the power to pay credits to third parties for the recycling and reuse activity they carry out. These payments are at the discretion of individual LAs so that they can take account of local circumstances. The Government introduced updated guidance in April this year, which gives greater encouragement to LAs to adopt good practice. The guidance strengthens the existing presumption that LAs will consider applications for credits from third parties which meet certain criteria and consider the social, environmental and economic benefits associated with community recycling.
	The guidance makes it clear that credit values should be the same for reuse as they are for recycling and disposal credits for third parties should be calculated on the same basis as credits for waste collection authorities.
	Guidance on the recycling credits scheme can be found on the Defra website at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/localauth/part_work.htm

Single Farm Payments

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many 2005 single farm payments have been made for a sum less than €100; what estimate he has made of 2005 payments of less than €100 yet to be paid; and if he will make a statement.

Barry Gardiner: As at 12 December 2006 the total number of payments made for the 2005 single farm payments scheme for less than €100 is 12,232. Of these, 12,179 were paid in full and 53 have been partially paid. There are 756 claims that are yet to receive either a partial or full payment.

Single Farm Payments

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many 2005 single farm payments were made for a sum in excess of  (a) €300,000 and  (b) £1 million; who the recipients were of those awards; how much was received by each recipient; what estimate he has made of the number of 2005 payments of each size yet to be paid; and if he will make a statement.

Barry Gardiner: As at 12 December 2006 the total number of payments made for the 2005 single payments scheme (SPS) in excess of €300,000 is 310, of which seven are in excess of £1 million. Of these, 300 have been paid in full and 10 have been partially paid.
	There are no claims of value €300,000 or more that are yet to receive either a partial or full payment.
	The figures produced are gross amounts and may differ when compared to the amount actually 'received' by the customer as some element of the payment may have been automatically 'intercepted' to pay off an outstanding debt.
	It is the Rural Payments Agency's (RPA) intention to publish on its website, shortly after the completion of 2005 SPS payments, details of amounts of SPS money paid to farmers and associated farm businesses. This follows the precedent set of publishing CAP payments for EAGGF for 2003-04 and 2004-05 over the last two years.
	Well known delays in implementing year one of SPS have impacted on RPA's payment timetable, but once service has normalised, the intention is to publish details of non-SPS CAP payment details in the spring and SPS payment details in the autumn each year.
	A table showing the amount received by each recipient has been placed in the House Library.

Single Farm Payments

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many claimants in England have been paid  (a) partial and  (b) full 2006 single farm payments since 1 December; what percentage this figure represents of total claimants; and if he will make a statement

Barry Gardiner: No 2006 single farm payments have been made.
	1,705 full 2005 single farm payments were made between 1 December and 12 December 2006 (inclusive). This figure represents 1.46 per cent. of 2005 total claimants paid between 1 December and 12 December 2006 (inclusive).

Tenant Farmer: Diversification

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what factors were taken into account when deciding to end the funding for the scheme set up to help tenant farmers to seek the means to diversify.

Barry Gardiner: The decision to end the adjudication scheme was not taken lightly. The Scheme supports the Code of Good Practice for agri-environment schemes and diversification projects within agricultural tenancies. It is administered by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and was set up in December last year, with the intention that it would continue for a period of four years. However, since its launch in December 2005, there has not been a single application for the Scheme.
	Given the current financial constraints within DEFRA, it would not have been a sensible use of public money to allocate funds for a further three years to a scheme for which there has been no interest. Therefore, we decided reluctantly that the Scheme should be closed at the end of 2006.
	The closure of the Scheme does not affect the validity of the Code of Good Practice, which stands in its own right and provides useful and informative advice to tenants and landlords contemplating diversification activities. The Code is available from the DEFRA website at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/farm/working/tenancies/pdf/trig-cogp.pdf.

Alcohol Sales

Lynda Waltho: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions he has had with  (a) Ministerial colleagues in (i) the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, (ii) the Home Office and (iii) the Department of Health and  (b) supermarket chains on  (A) the pricing of bulk buys of alcohol and  (B) the effect of the sale of cheap alcohol.

Ian McCartney: In recent years, DTI Ministers and officials responsible for competition issues have provided advice to the Home Office on the broader issue of the implications of competition law for any proposed measures designed to promote responsible drinking.

BAE Systems

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which BAE Systems arms export contracts worth over £1 million for which export licences have been approved since 1997; and what the  (a) country of destination,  (b) product approved and  (c) value of the contract was in each case.

Malcolm Wicks: Information on the Government's individual export licensing decisions is commercially confidential and I am therefore neither able to confirm nor deny whether BAE Systems has been granted any export licences since 1997.
	The Government publish information on export licences granted by destination, including total value of Standard Individual Export Licences granted, in their Annual Report on Strategic Export Controls, available from the Libraries of the House. The Government also publish Quarterly Reports covering licensing and performance information on the Export Control Organisation website:
	www.dti.gov.uk/europeandtrade/strategic-export-control/

British Household Panel Survey

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many and what proportion of  (a) working age adults and  (b) pensioners were recorded by the British Household Panel Survey as having (i) zero disadvantages, (ii) one disadvantage, (iii) two disadvantages, (iv) three disadvantages, (v) four disadvantages, (vi) five disadvantages, (vii) six disadvantages, (viii) seven disadvantages, (ix) eight disadvantages, (x) nine disadvantages and (xi) 10 disadvantages in each year since 1991.

Malcolm Wicks: Estimates from the British Household Panel Survey (see Table 1) suggest that the proportion of working age adults that have none of the listed disadvantages has increased since 1991, from 29.2 per cent. to 45.3 per cent. in 2003. The proportion suffering from three, four, five or six or more of these disadvantages has been continuously falling. In 1991, 23.9 per cent. of the working age population suffered from three or more of the listed disadvantages, compared with 11.7 per cent. in 2003.
	Grossing these proportions up to population estimates, this suggests that the number of working age adults with none of the listed disadvantages has increased from 10.1 million in 1991 to 16.2 million in 2003. (Note however that these are estimates derived from a survey sample.) The number suffering three or more of these disadvantages has approximately halved from 8.3 million in 1991 to 4.1 million in 2003.
	
		
			  Table 1: Working age adults 
			  Number of disadvantages  1991  1993  1995  1997  2001  2003 
			 0 29.22 32.78 36.15 39.88 42.01 45.34 
			 1 28.28 28.41 28.54 28.02 30.36 28.69 
			 2 18.64 17.71 16.80 15.42 14.11 14.23 
			 3 10.96 10.20 9.06 8.25 7.07 6.49 
			 4 6.58 5.43 5.24 4.78 3.53 2.84 
			 5 3.52 3.22 2.66 2.19 1.67 1.81 
			 6 or more 2.80 2.25 1.55 1.46 1.25 0.60 
			 GB population (million) 34.5 34.6 34.9 34.7 35.4 35.8 
			  Estimated number with:   
			 0 disadvantages (million) 10.1 11.3 12.7 13.8 14.9 16.2 
			 1 disadvantage (million) 9.8 9.8 10.0 9.7 10.7 10.3 
			 2 disadvantages (million) 6.4 6.1 5.9 5.4 5.0 5.1 
			 3 disadvantages (million) 3.8 3.5 3.2 2.9 2.5 2.3 
			 4 disadvantages (million) 2.3 1.9 1.8 1.7 1.2 1.0 
			 5 disadvantages (million) 1.2 1.1 0.9 0.8 0.6 0.6 
			 6 or more disadvantages (million) 1.0 0.8 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.2 
			  Note: Estimates obtained by grossing weighted BHPS figures. Indicators of disadvantage are unemployment, living in workless household, having no educational qualifications, living in social housing, living in overcrowded conditions, having poor health, having poor mental health, living alone, consumer durable disadvantage, financial stress. Population estimates derived from Population Trends (various issues). 
		
	
	Estimates from the British Household Panel Survey (see Table 2) suggest that the proportion of pensioners that have none of the listed disadvantages has increased since 1991, from 5.2 per cent. to 16 per cent. in 2003. The proportion suffering from three, four, five or six or more of these disadvantages has been falling over the period. In 1991, 58.2 per cent. of the pension age population suffered from three or more of the listed disadvantages, compared with 38.8 per cent. in 2003.
	
		
			  Table 2: Pensioners 
			  Number of disadvantages  1991  1993  1995  1997  2001  2003 
			 0 5.2 7.8 9.3 11.0 13.0 16.0 
			 1 14.1 15.7 17.6 20.0 21.4 25.0 
			 2 22.5 22.4 20.6 20.1 21.8 20.2 
			 3 23.1 22.9 21.1 20.9 18.2 18.3 
			 4 20.1 17.3 17.6 16.2 14.3 12.1 
			 5 10.3 9.1 10.0 8.4 7.9 6.2 
			 6 or more 4.7 4.8 3.8 3.4 3.4 2.2 
			 GB population (million) 10.4 10.4 10.4 10.5 10.6 10.7 
			  Estimated number with:   
			 0 disadvantages (million) 0.5 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4 1.7 
			 1 disadvantage (million) 1.5 1.6 1.8 2.1 2.3 2.7 
			 2 disadvantages (million) 2.3 2.3 2.1 2.1 2.3 2.2 
			 3 disadvantages (million) 2.4 2.4 2.2 2.2 1.9 2.0 
			 4 disadvantages (million) 2.1 1.8 1.8 1.7 1.5 1.3 
			 5 disadvantages (million) 1.1 0.9 1.0 0.9 0.8 0.7 
			 6 or more disadvantages (million) 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.2 
			  Note:  Estimates obtained by grossing weighted BHPS figures. Indicators of disadvantage are having no educational qualifications, living in social housing, living in overcrowded conditions, having poor health, having poor mental health, living alone, consumer durable disadvantage, financial stress. Population estimates derived from Population Trends (various issues).

Business Support

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much was allocated to the support of UK business in 2005-06.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Department and its agencies spent £381 million on Business Support in 2005-06. Expenditure on the main Business Support programmes was as follows:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 Grant for Research and Development (GRD) 22.0 
			 Collaborative Research and Development (CRD) 13.1 
			 Knowledge Transfer Networks (KTN) 13.7 
			 Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP) 24.5 
			 Small Firms Loan Guarantee (SFLG) 56.4 
			 Selective Finance for Investment in England (SFIE) 24.9 
			 Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) 6.0 
			 Business Performance Diagnostic (BPD)(1) 8.8 
			 Grant for Investigating an Innovative Idea (GIII) 1.6 
			 Sustainable Energy Capital Grants (Renewables) 42.0 
			 Legacy Schemes(2) 168.0 
			 Total Business Support 381.0 
			 (1) Includes expenditure on "Support to Implement Best Business Practice" (SIBBP), which is no longer available. (2) 'Legacy' refers to schemes that are now closed, including "Access to Best Business Practice" (ABBP), which was introduced as part of the "Business Support Transformation Programme", but has subsequently been withdrawn.

Carbon-Free Energy

Howard Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what research his Department has carried out into the feasibility of constructing a high-voltage direct current grid across the European region to enable the long distance transport of carbon-free energy.

Malcolm Wicks: While my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State is aware that a number of academics, entrepreneurs and manufacturers have proposed an overarching "European DC Supergrid" as a means of connecting offshore wind farms in particular to existing AC power systems, no specific research into this concept has been carried out by the DTI.

Coal Industry Compensation

Don Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to the Answer of 4 December 2006,  Official Report, column 14W, on coal industry compensation, what the proposals were which his Department put to claimants' solicitors for the compensation of surface workers for exposure to dust which were rejected; on what date those proposals were put to the claimants' solicitors; and on what date they were rejected.

Malcolm Wicks: The Department tried to negotiate a settlement through a schemed approach based on the Claims Handlers Agreement (CHA). The Department agreed with the Claimants Group (CG) on taking mixed workers—those who had worked both underground and on the surface—into the scheme. The Department offered that any surface worker in a dusty job—with agreement on what these were—could go through the medical assessment for chronic bronchitis and temporary exacerbation of asthma which provides for low levels of compensation (on the lines of the tariffs now operating in the fast track scheme). And any surface worker with a pneumoconiosis reading (which the Department's claims handlers, Capita, took as a proxy for a marker of exposure to dust) could go through the full medical assessment and have access to higher levels of compensation for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).
	This proposal was submitted to the CG on 17 July 2000. The CG rejected the Department's position in a counter proposal on October 2000.
	CG were in favour of further joint studies and the House was informed in March 2001. As a result of these further studies and developments over the next four years, the Department's position is now that 'it cannot scheme compensation' to surface only workers for COPD.

Departmental Energy Policy

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he plans to make his Department carbon neutral.

Jim Fitzpatrick: DTI is committed to the achievement of the new targets contained in the framework for sustainable development on the government estate launched by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, in June 2006. DTI is working toward both reducing its carbon emissions and becoming carbon neutral.

Departmental Projects

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the 20 largest procurement projects initiated by his Department since May 1997 were; what the  (a) original budget,  (b) cost to date and  (c) consultancy fees were; and what the final cost was of each project which has been completed.

Jim Fitzpatrick: DTI financial records do not distinguish projects with significant procurement elements form other major projects. Accordingly the information required is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportional costs.

Departmental Staff

Michael Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the effective date is for annual pay awards to his Department's staff; and what the actual implementation date was in each of the last five years.

Jim Fitzpatrick: holding answer 12 December 2006
	For each of the last five years, the effective date of the annual pay awards has been 1 August for all staff below the SCS in Ranges 2 to 11 and Faststream. The effective date for SCS staff has been 1 April from 2002 to 2005. In 2006 the SCS pay award was paid in two stages with the first stage effective from 1 April and second effective from 1 November. The table below show the actual months the awards were implemented for each of the last five years.
	
		
			   Implemented 
			   Staff in ranges 2 to 11 and Faststream  SCS 
			 2006 December 2006 July and November 2006 
			 2005 August 2005 July 2005 
			 2004 August 2004 August 2004 
			 2003 November 2003 August 2003 
			 2002 August 2002 July 2002

Employment Tribunals

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many employment tribunal cases are waiting to be heard; what the average waiting time is for cases to be heard; what the longest time is that a case has been waiting; how far ahead cases have been listed for hearing; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Tribunal Service does not hold electronically information to provide specific answers to the questions raised. However, the following can be provided:
	As of 31 October 2006, the employment tribunals had 143,289 live cases awaiting disposal. Of these 19,773 are single claims and 123,516 are cases that are part of a multiple.
	In the financial year 2005-06, 79 per cent. of employment tribunal cases had a first hearing within 26 weeks of the claim being received. The latest comparable figure for the current financial year, from 1 April 2006 to 31 October 2006, is 80 per cent.
	Employment tribunals aim to hear cases allocated to the short conciliation track in the 8th week after the claim has been sent to the respondent and claims allocated to the standard track in the 14th week.
	Employment tribunals have a number of cases received in 1994-95 that are still awaiting disposal all of which relate to pension access by part time workers.

Energy Review

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will place in the Library a copy of the report commissioned by the Energy Review team from Ernst and Young.

Malcolm Wicks: Ernst and Young contributed to our work in the Energy Review on modelling, to provide estimates of the relative cost of electricity generation technologies under different scenarios, and assumptions to inform policy analysis. An overview of this work was included in the Energy Review report: "The Energy Challenge", published in July 2006 (annex B, pages 182-198). More detailed information is also available on the DTI website at:
	http://www.dti.gov.uk/energy/review/models/page32771.html.
	Ernst and Young also prepared two informal papers for the Energy Review, one looking at the management and financing of long-term nuclear waste management, and the other covering the financing of decommissioning nuclear power stations. Redacted versions of these two papers will be available shortly.

Enterprise Week

Mark Prisk: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much was spent by the Small Business Service on promoting Enterprise Week in  (a) 2004 and  (b) 2005.

Margaret Hodge: Enterprise Insight estimates that in publicising Enterprise Weeks 2004 and 2005 it spent £205,000 in 2004, and £254,000 in its accounting period 1 January 2005 to 31 March 2006.
	The Small Business Service did not incur any direct expenditure on promoting Enterprise Week 2004 or 2005.

Flood Defences

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry from which budget the building of maintenance of flood defences to protect nuclear power stations is met; what the cost of  (a) building and  (b) maintaining flood defences to protect nuclear power stations was in each year since 1990; how such costs are taken into account when assessing the economic viability of nuclear power stations; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: The building and maintenance of flood defences is the responsibility of the nuclear power station operators British Energy and Magnox Electric. The operators cover their own costs for both flood defences and coastal protection activities when the need arises.
	British Energy has incurred no costs in building flood defences at any of their eight nuclear station sites since 1990, as the need has not arisen. British Energy has maintained flood defences at the Sizewell and Dungeness sites as a planned and natural consequence of the decision to employ soft-shore flood defence strategies at the two sites.
	Magnox Electric has spent £20,000 on a minor flood protection project at Berkeley and estimate that they spent approximately £60,000 per year on beach feeding at Dungeness between 1990-2000, and £460,000 in total since then.
	It is for individual companies to consider how these costs, and future projected costs, affect the economic viability of their plant.

Fuel Poverty

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the number of people living in fuel poverty in  (a) Chelmsford local authority area and  (b) Essex in each of the last five years.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 19 December 2006
	Fuel poverty statistics are available only at Government Office region level. Latest available figures are sourced from the 2004 English House Condition Survey and show that in 2004, 141,000 households in the east of England (6.1 per cent. of all households in the east of England) were in fuel poverty. This statistic cannot be broken down further. Figures for fuel poverty in the east of England in 2001, 2003 and 2004 are given in the table. Figures for other years are not available.
	
		
			  Households in fuel poverty 
			   Number 
			 2001 137,000 
			 2003 115,000 
			 2004 141,000 
		
	
	Small variations between years may be due to sampling variability, rather than underlying trends in the data.

Insolvency Act

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many  (a) arrests,  (b) charges and  (c) successful prosecutions under sections 216 and 217 of the Insolvency Act 1986 have been made in each year since that Act came into force.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The following table details the number of s.216 Insolvency Act Offences prosecuted and number of convictions obtained for each year since the Act came into force. S.217 of the Insolvency Act is not an offence provision and relates only to civil liability. The figures relate to years running from 1 April to 31 March. 1993-94 is the first year where prosecutions/convictions are recorded. 2005-06 is the most recent annual figure available. None of those individuals prosecuted were arrested. DTI Investigation Officers do not have powers of arrest.
	
		
			  Number of offences 
			   Prosecutions  Convictions 
			 1993-94 10 5 
			 1994-95 1 0 
			 1995-96 10 10 
			 1996-97 48 35 
			 1997-98 38 28 
			 1998-99 36 28 
			 1999-2000 20 15 
			 2000-01 46 35 
			 2001-02 74 58 
			 2002-03 38 33 
			 2003-04 41 36 
			 2004-05 45 27 
			 2005-06 30 19

Insolvency Act

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry in how many cases in each year since the entry into force of the Insolvency Act 1986 creditors have  (a) attempted to claim and  (b) successfully claimed remuneration under section 217 of that Act.

Ian McCartney: No statistics are maintained in relation to legal actions taken by creditors under section 217 of the Insolvency Act 1986 as my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry is not a party to them.

National Consumer Council

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what research projects have been undertaken by the National Consumer Council funded from the public purse since May 1997; and at what cost.

Ian McCartney: The National Consumer Council (NCC) consists of three Councils: the Scottish Consumer Council (SCC) based in Glasgow, the Welsh Consumer Council (WCC) based in Cardiff, and NCC London.
	A list of research projects has been placed in the Libraries of the House.
	The Department pays the NCC in the form of annual grant in aid as shown in the following table; this covers the vast majority of their costs and is not identified on a project-by-project basis.
	A comparable set of figures is not available due to changes to accounting rules for non-departmental public bodies with cash-based allocations until 2002-03, and resource based allocations since then. The total budget includes both the resource/grant in aid from DTI and income from (in the past DTI and) other sources that is for specific projects. An example of the major sources is given for last year. Fuller information on sources and amounts involved are detailed in annual reports available in the Libraries of the House.
	Approximately 15 per cent. of NCC's grant in aid is allocated to SCC, then 11 per cent. to WCC, leaving 74 per cent. to be spent in London.
	
		
			   Resource budget (£ million) (DTI DEL)  Cash budget (£ million) (rounded to £000)  NCC total budget (£ million) (rounded to £100,000) 
			 2006-07 3.528 (1)3.541 — 
			 2005-06 3.932 (2)3.779 (3)5.9 
			 2004-05 4.059 (2)4.039 5.0 
			 2003-04 3.565 (2)3.973 5.6 
			 2002-03 — 3.682 5.1 
			 2001-02 — 3.565 4.5 
			 2000-01 — 3.084 3.6 
			 1999-2000 — 2.587 3.3 
			 1998-99 — 2.366 3.0 
			 1997-98 — 2.425 3.2 
			 (1) Indicative (2) Cash supplied (3) For example included £897,000 from Scottish Executive and £45,000 from Defra

Nuclear Power Facilities

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether any of the reports commissioned from consultants as part of the Energy Review refer to the siting of new nuclear power stations.

Malcolm Wicks: As part of our analysis for the Energy Review we commissioned Jackson Consulting to undertake a high-level assessment of the suitability of the existing nuclear generating sites to support possible new power stations. The purpose of the report was to help us form a view on whether nuclear could play a role in the future generating mix. The study was not aimed at the potential siting of new plant—this will be for the private sector to decide, should they decide to bring forward proposals for new build.
	The report prepared for the Review by Morgan Stanley focussed on the investment and market conditions under which new generating capacity of any technology might come forward. There were references to the availability of sites as part of this.
	There were no other reports that referred to the siting of new nuclear power stations.

Nuclear Power Facilities

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on what date his Department was informed of boiler tube cracking at British Energy power stations Hunterston B and Hinkley Point B.

Alistair Darling: holding answer 4 December 2006
	Boiler Tube Cracking is a recognised phenomenon at Hunterston B and Hinkley Point B. HSE's Nuclear Safety Directorate has monitored the situation since the early 1990s and BE disclosed the phenomenon in its recent re-listing prospectus. The Department was informed of the recent incidents of boiler tube cracking at these stations shortly before British Energy made its announcements to the market.

Nuclear Waste

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment his Department has made of the safety implications of storing nuclear waste on-site during the operating lifetimes of  (a) existing and  (b) future nuclear power stations; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Darling: Responsibility for regulating the safety of radioactive waste storage on nuclear power stations sites rests with the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Installations Inspectorate, who undertake a rigorous regime of inspection and enforcement for all nuclear licensed sites and would make any such assessments. Waste storage at any new nuclear power plants would also be subject to NII's regulatory oversight.

Phoenix Companies

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many calls regarding Phoenix companies have been received by his Department's enforcement hotline since February 2005; how many have been referred for investigation; and how many resulted in  (a) disqualification of a director and  (b) a successful criminal conviction.

Ian McCartney: It is likely that complaints regarding so called "phoenix companies" will be recorded as a complaint under section 216 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (reuse of a prohibited name after a certain type of insolvency). It is possible that section 216 may also apply to new businesses run by directors of other insolvent companies which have no connection with that previous business' activities and consequently would not be considered as a "phoenix" company. Section 216 applies to any director of an insolvent company, independently of any wrongdoing. The number of complaints received via the Hotline since February 2005, which relate specifically to section 216 is 10 and none have yet resulted in either a disqualification or prosecution of a director.

Post Offices

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the average population is of towns with a post office.

Jim Fitzpatrick: I understand that Post Office Ltd. do not hold this type of information, because it is not required for operational purposes.
	Post office branches are classified as being in either a rural area (in a settlement under 10,000 population) or an urban area (settlements over 10,000 population); the latest figures show that there are 7,754 branches classified as rural and 6,509 branches classified as urban.

Postal Services

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to his statement of 14 December 2006,  Official Report, columns 1026-28, on the post office network, how many post offices in  (a) Shropshire and  (b) Shrewsbury he expects to close.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Government's proposals for the post office network are the subject of a public consultation which runs until 8 March 2007.
	Following the Government response to the national consultation, Post Office Ltd. will draw up local area implementation plans within the framework of our final decision. Post Office Ltd. will, after discussion with subpostmasters, Postwatch and Members of Parliament, consult publicly on its proposals for closures and other changes in service provision for six weeks, providing the opportunity for local representations and suggestions.
	Decisions will then be a matter for the company in how best to restructure the network, ensuring that no one part of the network or no particular group of people is significantly more adversely affected than any other.

Postal Services

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much the  (a) provision of benefits,  (b) payment of utility bills and  (c) sale of licences through post offices was worth to the post office (i) in monetary terms and (ii) as a percentage of total revenue in each year between 1995 and 2006.

Jim Fitzpatrick: This is a commercially confidential matter for Royal Mail.

Postal Services

Alan Reid: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which postal districts do not meet the criterion of having 95 per cent. of the population within six miles of a post office outlet.

Jim Fitzpatrick: I understand from Post Office Ltd. that, of the 2,795 UK postcode districts, the following 38 do not meet the Government's proposed criterion for 95 per cent. of the population in postcode districts to be within six miles of a post office outlet:
	AB36
	AB37
	DD9
	DG10
	FK21
	IV13
	IV16
	IV23
	IV26
	IV27
	IV28
	IV4
	IV52
	IV53
	IV54
	IV63
	KW11
	KW12
	KW9
	ML12
	NE48
	PA22
	PA29
	PA42
	PA60
	PH10
	PH11
	PH16
	PH17
	PH18
	PH20
	PH21
	PH25
	PH31
	PH35
	PH49
	TD3
	TD7

Postal Services

Alan Reid: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the definition is of remote areas as referred to in paragraph 5.2 of the consultation document on the future of the Post Office network.

Jim Fitzpatrick: There is no specific definition of 'remote' rural. The relevant access criteria will apply to all postcode districts except for those 38 out of 2,795 that are currently outside its scope.
	The aim of using postcode districts as the basis for our proposed access criteria is to offer extra protection to remote areas, which would not be covered by Royal Mail's Universal Service Obligations, which are based on larger postcode areas.

Postal Services

David Mundell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether community feedback was sought on the performance of post office outreach services piloted in the last 18 months.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Yes. This is reflected in Post Office Ltd.'s report on the pilot outreach services and in the company's subsequent monitoring of the effectiveness of, and levels of customer satisfaction with, the ongoing pilots.

Postal Services

David Mundell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which post offices are under consideration for closure.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Post Office will develop specific proposals for post office closures and other changes to service provision after the national public consultation has ended and Government have reached its final decisions on its future strategy for the post office network.

Postal Services

David Mundell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to the Statement of 14 December 2006,  Official Report, columns 1026-8, on the post office network, what he expects the annual cost of a mobile post office outreach service to be.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Until Post Office Ltd. has developed specific proposals for network restructuring and identified the most suitable form of Outreach Service for particular communities, it is not possible to estimate the annual cost of such services.

Postal Services

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what consultation he has had with sub-postmasters regarding additional services that could be offered through their sub-post offices.

Jim Fitzpatrick: There have been numerous discussions with the National Federation of Sub-postmasters and with Post Office Ltd. about the scope for introducing additional services through the post office network.

Postal Services

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will take steps to allow sub-post offices to work with carriers other than the Royal Mail.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Any mail operators and online businesses wishing to use the post office network should approach Post Office Limited. If a commercial agreement cannot be reached with Royal Mail/Post Office Ltd., they can refer the matter to Postcomm to consider.

Postal Services

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what funding he will make available for mobile post offices in the next five years.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Government's proposals for the future post office network include funding of up to £1.7 billion. The specific sum available for mobile post offices will depend on Post Office Ltd.'s detailed area proposals for service provision after the national public consultation has ended.

Postal Services

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proportion of the population lives within three miles of a post office; and what that figure is in rural areas.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Post Office Ltd. advise that nationally 99.8 per cent. of the population lives within three miles of a post office and that in rural areas 99 per cent. of the population lives within three miles of a post office.

Postal Services

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proportion of the population lives within one mile of a post office; and what that figure is in  (a) urban areas and  (b) deprived urban areas.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Post Office Ltd. advises that nationally 92.75 per cent. of the population lives within 1 mile of a post office, that in urban areas 99.17 per cent. of the population lives within 1 mile of a post office and that in deprived urban areas 99.8 per cent. of the population lives within 1 mile of a post office.

Postal Services

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which organisations will be consulted in the consultation programme on post office closures.

Jim Fitzpatrick: In addition to those organisations listed as consultees in the national consultation document, we will welcome comments from any other organisations or individuals. In due course, Post Office Ltd. will draw up detailed area proposals for closures or other changes in post office service provision on which there will be local consultation.

Postal Services

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the  (a) average level and  (b) maximum amount of compensation in monetary terms of compensation for sub-postmasters who leave the Post Office network under the restructuring programme; and whether such compensation will be provided from the annual social network subsidy.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Until Post Office Ltd. has fully developed its detailed area proposals for network restructuring, based on groupings of adjacent parliamentary constituencies, it is not possible to estimate either the average level or maximum amount of compensation which may be paid. Compensation for subpostmasters leaving the network under the restructuring programme will not be funded from the annual social network payments.

Postal Services

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions he has had with local authorities on the delivery of additional council services through sub-post offices.

Jim Fitzpatrick: My right hon. Friend has had no specific discussions on the delivery of additional council services through post offices as these are essentially matters to be determined on a commercial basis between individual local authorities and Post Office Ltd.
	However Post Office Ltd. are having discussions with the Department for Communities and Local Government and with the Local Government Association to explore possible options for delivering additional council services.

Postal Services

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the outcome has been of the pilot schemes for mobile post offices.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Post Office Ltd.'s report on the pilot schemes of innovative delivery channels for delivery of post office services, including mobile post offices, was published on 8 March 2006 and is available on their website.
	Post Office Ltd. advises that of the 20 pilot sites, four operate mobile post offices, each serving between five and nine separate communities. Post Office Ltd. continues to explore ways in which it can improve the mobile service. The overall response to the pilot schemes is favourable, with latest figures indicating that 93 per cent. of customers are satisfied with their Outreach service.

Postal Services

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which main areas of expenditure account for the £1.7 billion financial package he has announced for the post office network.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The funding package will cover social network payments to 2011, the costs of the network restructuring programme, including compensation to subpostmasters leaving the network under the programme and the expansion of Outreach services, and forecast losses of Post Office Ltd. to 2011.

Postal Services

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what public consultation process will be undertaken on the sub-post office closures proposed by the Royal Mail.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Post Office Ltd. will undertake local public consultation on its proposals for post office closures and other changes in service provision based on groupings of adjacent parliamentary constituencies.

Postal Services

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the proportion of the 2,500 sub-post office closures he has announced which will be in  (a) rural and  (b) urban areas.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Until Post Office Ltd. has developed its specific proposals for network restructuring, including the introduction of Outreach service, it is premature to speculate how many post office closures will be in urban areas and how many in rural areas.

Postal Services

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much will be invested in improving Crown post offices over the next five years.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Until Post Office Ltd. has fully developed its proposals for improving Crown post offices it is too early to say.

Postal Services

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the number of Crown post offices which will close in the next three years.

Jim Fitzpatrick: None. This is a commercial and operational decision for Post Office Ltd. to bring the Crown office segment of the network back to profit, and I understand that the company is working closely with staff and unions to develop a strategy to deliver this.

Postal Services

David Mundell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many sub-postmasters in Scotland have indicated that they wish to leave the network.

Jim Fitzpatrick: None. This will be a matter for Post Office Ltd. to ascertain in the context of developing detailed network restructuring proposals in Scotland.

Public Sector Information

James Arbuthnot: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether the Government intend to implement the recommendations made by the Office of Fair Trading in its market study on public sector information; and if he will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: holding answer 18 December 2006
	DTI is responsible for co-ordinating the preparation of the agreed Government response, and officials will liaise with other Government Departments with a relevant policy interest. Government are required to respond within 90 days of the OFT publication, producing a plan explaining how they will implement the recommendations, or if chosen any alternative solution. No action plan is required if no recommendations are accepted. Where the OFT makes no regulatory changes, it is for Ministers to decide whether an action plan is appropriate.

Regional Development Agencies

Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what funding was made available to each regional development agency by the  (a) Department for Education and Skills,  (b) Department for Culture, Media and Sport,  (c) Department for Food, Environment and Rural Affairs,  (d) Department of Health,  (e) Home Office,  (f) Department for Transport,  (g) Department for Work and Pensions and  (h) Department for Communities and Local Government in each year from 2001-02 to 2005-06; and what funding has been allocated for 2006-07 and 2007-08.

Margaret Hodge: The following tables show the funding made available to the Regional Development Agencies from the Government Departments who contribute to the Single Pot and the allocations made to the Regional Development Agencies for 2006-07 and 2007-08.
	
		
			  Single Pot contributions 2001-02 to 2005-06 
			  £ million 
			  Government Department  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06 
			 Department of Trade and Industry 71 160 179 234 595 
			 Department for Communities and Local Government (formerly Office of the Deputy Prime Minister) 1,196 1,369 1,552 1,511 1,492 
			 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 80 42 41 46 77 
			 Department for Education and Skills 57 42 42 42 43 
			 UK Trade and Investment 12 12 12 13 15 
			 Department for Culture Media and Sport 0 0 0 2 4 
		
	
	The Department of Health, the Home Office, the Department for Transport and the Department for Work and Pensions do not contribute to the RDA's core grant (the Single Pot).
	
		
			  RDA allocations for 2006-07 and 2007-08 
			   £ million 
			   Regional Development Agencies 
			 2006-07 2,319 
			 2007-08 2,309

Regulation (EC) No. 2006/2004

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what information is  (a) exchanged,  (b) stored and  (c) passed on to non-EU countries in connection with Regulation (EC) No. 2006/2004; what right of access individuals have to data on themselves so held; which agencies are expected to seek access to such data; what the aim is of the legislation; and if he will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: The aim of Regulation (EC) No. 2006/2004 is to formalise and improve co-operation arrangements between member states' consumer enforcement authorities, in order to better combat cross-border frauds and scams. Its focus is on practices that affect the collective interest of consumers, rather than complaints affecting only individuals, and its scope is limited to the 15 pieces of EC consumer protection legislation named in the annex to the regulation.
	Basic details of alleged infringements e.g. business names and details of the complaint will be transmitted from one country's Single Liaison Office to another's and then on to the relevant enforcer by means of a secure database.
	Access to the database is limited to enforcers designated as competent authorities and national Single Liaison Offices (in the UK, the Office of Fair Trading). Single Liaison Offices will only have access to information relating to requests for mutual assistance, which have not been given confidential treatment. Non-EU countries do not have access to the database. The regulation does anticipate entering into arrangements with third (i.e.: non-EU) countries but none are in place at present, and any future arrangements should have appropriate safeguards.
	Data held on the database will be subject to the provisions and protections of the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA). While the regulation requires us to prevent the subject access provisions of the DPA being used by business to obstruct the proper functioning of the regulation, we are satisfied that this fact should not cause problems in practice because appropriate safeguards have been built in.

Research Projects

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the 20 largest by value projects were funded through the research councils in 2005-06.

Malcolm Wicks: The following table provides details of the 20 largest items by expenditure by the UK Research Councils in the financial year 2005-06.
	
		
			  £ million 
			   Expenditure in 2005-06 
			 European Space Agency 101.9 
			 CERN 79.1 
			 Diamond Light Source 74.0 
			 British Antarctic Survey 44.9 
			 ISIS Target Station 2 42,4 
			 ISIS Operations 35.6 
			 MRC National Institute for Medical Research 33.6 
			 Subscription for European Southern Observatory 32.9 
			 MRC National Institute for Medical Research: Purchase of Land 28.0 
			 Synchrotron Radiation Source Main Facility 27.7 
			 British Geological Survey 27.5 
			 Centre for Ecology and Hydrology 22.6 
			 MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology 20.9 
			 Fusion 20.6 
			 James Cook Research Vessel 15.9 
			 International Subscriptions—Institut Laue Langevin 15.2 
			 MRC Clinical Science Centre 14.7 
			 MRC Laboratorie, The Gambia 9.6 
			 MRC Human Genetics Unit 8.7 
			 High Performance Computing 8.2

Rural Areas

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what programmes of support his Department makes available to rural areas; and what the financial cost is expected to be in 2007-08.

Margaret Hodge: The Government are committed to building a strong economy and fair society where there is opportunity and security for all. This commitment applies equally in rural and urban areas. All of this Department's business support products are available in both rural and urban areas. However to provide information on the cost of these programmes in rural areas alone is only possible at disproportionate cost.

Scientific Publications Market

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he has sent a response to the European Commission on its study on the economic and technical evolution of the scientific publications market in Europe.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 19 December 2006
	The DTI has not submitted a formal response to the European Commission on this study. DTI officials held a seminar with the authors of the report and with representation from the European Commission in June 2006 to give the UK scientific communications community the opportunity to express their views on the report. DTI has informally discussed the report with relevant Commission officials.

World Trade Organisation

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to the Answer of 30 November 2006,  Official Report, column 815W, on the World Trade Organisation, whether he supports the reform of the World Trade Organisation.

Ian McCartney: The Government remain fully committed to securing an ambitious, pro-development outcome to the Doha Development Agenda, and it would therefore be premature to open a debate on reform of the WTO at this time.

Carbon Neutrality

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales pursuant to his answer of 7 December 2006,  Official Report, columns 578-79W, on carbon neutrality, how much his Department expects to contribute to the Carbon Offsetting Fund in the next financial year.

Peter Hain: The Wales Office currently expects to contribute around £30.00 to the Carbon Offsetting Fund for Ministerial Air Travel next financial year.

HM Revenue and Customs

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has to meet the Chancellor of the Exchequer to discuss the closure of HM Revenue and Customs office in South Wales.

Peter Hain: My hon. Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State wrote in November to the Paymaster General, Dawn Primarolo, concerning the HM Revenue and Customs Change programme. He will also be meeting the Paymaster General in January to discuss the programme further.

Manufacturing

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the Welsh Assembly Government about supporting manufacturing in south east Wales.

Peter Hain: I have regular discussions with Welsh Assembly Government colleagues on a range of issues, including those affecting the manufacturing industry in Wales.
	We are committed to maintaining a strong manufacturing sector through the development of high value manufacturing jobs. The Government's enterprise agenda to promote growth and employment is directly benefiting manufacturers, such as through the introduction of the R&D tax credit. In addition, the Welsh Assembly Government offered 79 RSA grants totalling £43 million to manufacturing firms in Wales in 2005-06, safeguarding and creating almost 5,000 jobs.

Nuclear Power

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he plans to meet the Welsh Assembly Government to discuss the role of civil nuclear power in the energy mix for Wales.

Peter Hain: While energy policy is a non-devolved matter, I have discussed the role of nuclear power with the Welsh Assembly Government on a number of occasions, both before and after the publication of the recent Energy Review. The Government will set out further details of their proposals when the Energy White Paper is published later this year.

Parliamentary Questions

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many written parliamentary questions to his Department in the 2005-06 session were answered with a reply that it had not been possible to reply before prorogation or similar wording.

Peter Hain: None.

Pre-legislative Scrutiny

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the Leader of the House on pre-legislative scrutiny for measures introduced under the Government of Wales Act 2006.

Peter Hain: Pre-legislative scrutiny by the Welsh Affairs Committee has played a crucial role in improving the scrutiny that Wales-only Bills have received in Parliament.
	We made a number of commitments during the passage of the Government of Wales Act and subsequently, that there would be pre-legislative scrutiny of the proposed Orders in Council. The Welsh Affairs Committee is currently considering how best to take this forward.
	The overall time allocated for pre-scrutiny of a proposed Order will enable the Government to consider and respond to any recommendations that the Welsh Affairs Committee might make during the course of its pre-scrutiny.

Parliamentary Questions

Theresa May: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners how many written parliamentary questions to the Church Commissioners in the 2005-06 session were not answered wholly or in part on grounds of disproportionate cost.

Stuart Bell: One. On 5 December 2005,  Official Report, column 906W, I said that the question with the reference number 33411, tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Vauxhall (Kate Hoey), could not be answered on grounds of disproportionate cost.

Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs

Gordon Banks: To ask the Solicitor-General in how many cases since 2000 HM Revenue and Customs and its predecessor body sought to recover costs from defendants in cases revolving around clarification of points of law.

Mike O'Brien: Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office (RCPO) does not collate statistics that record costs sought from defendants in cases revolving around clarification of 'points of law'. To gather the information could be achieved only at a disproportionate cost.

Christmas Travel

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence further to the letter of 2 October 2006 to Wing Commander Conway from the hon. Member for North East Milton Keynes, what improvements have been made to the air bridge from  (a) Afghanistan and  (b) Iraq to avoid delays for troops travelling home over the Christmas period.

Adam Ingram: The safe and expeditious recovery of our Forces returning from operational Theatres is a high priority. Troop movement is generally working well and between April and December 2006, 80 per cent. of RAF operational passenger air transport flights were on time or delayed by less than three hours. For Iraq this figure was 86 per cent. and for Afghanistan was 75 per cent. Recent improvements to the Afghanistan air-bridge include refurbishment of the runway at Kandahar Airfield, which was completed in November 2006. This now allows troops to fly from an airport closer to the majority of deployed locations, reducing in-Theatre journeys by up to 24 hours.

Complaints

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many  (a) formal complaints,  (b) complaints through I-support or the enquiry centre and  (c) formal grievances have been made by Royal Navy personnel since the roll out of Joint Personnel Administration to the Royal Navy.

Derek Twigg: Since the roll out of Joint Personnel Administration (JPA) to the Royal Navy there has been one formal complaint, five complaints via the internal complaints procedure and no formal grievances relating to JPA.

Complaints

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many complaints from RAF personnel the Armed Forces Joint Personnel Administration Agency's internal complaints system received about mispayment under the system in each month since March 2006; and how many  (a) are still outstanding and  (b) have been resolved since September.

Derek Twigg: As at 15 December 2006 725 complaints had been received from RAF personnel via the centralised JPA complaints process about mispayments and other apparent problems with pay, or the handling of queries. Of these 675 have been resolved and 50 remain outstanding. The following table shows the month on month position since March 2006:
	
		
			  Month  Received  Outstanding  Resolved 
			 April(1) 28 0 28 
			 May 49 0 49 
			 June 121 1 120 
			 July 142 0 142 
			 August 81 1 80 
			 September 114 3 111 
			 October 67 3 64 
			 November 95 19 76 
			 December 28 23 5 
			 Total 725 50 675 
			 (1) The figure for April includes pre April cases.

Faslane

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the main skill groups are of civilian personnel employed at  (a) Faslane naval base and  (b) RNAD Coulport; and how many are employed in each of these skill groups.

Adam Ingram: Individual defence installations do not routinely publish personnel data, as different organisations and agencies are responsible for the same location or site. Figures for the posted location of Ministry of Defence civilian personnel are regularly produced at local authority level, using centrally held data. Estimates below this level are not routinely produced.
	Ministry of Defence civilian personnel are grouped into job families by broad skill sets and our best estimate of the numbers employed in those job families at HM Naval Base (HMNB) Clyde's Faslane and RNAD Coulport sites is shown as follows, in full-time equivalent terms.
	These figures do not include the workforce of Babcock Naval Services, the commercial partner of HMNB Clyde, who employ additional civilian personnel spread across both sites. Estimates provided by Babcock Naval Services put the total of these personnel at around 1,430.
	
		
			   Faslane  Coulport 
			 Business Management and Improvement 20 10 
			 Communications and Media 10 — 
			 Commercial 10 — 
			 Corporate Support 90 30 
			 Engineering and Science 100 110 
			 Estates 20 — 
			 Health Professionals 10 — 
			 Human Resources 20 — 
			 Information 40 * 
			 Logistics 100 40 
			 Procurement * — 
			 Programme and Project Management 60 10 
			 Resource Management 20 — 
			 Security, Health and Safety 570 480 
			 Training and Education 20 — 
			 Other * * 
			 Total 1,080 670 
			  Notes: 1. Full-time Equivalency totals that take account of the hours worked by each part-time employee, and will not be consistent with a headcount. 2. Numbers are rounded to the nearest 10, with figures of 5 or below denoted by *. 3. Due to the rounding methods used, totals may not always equal the sum of the parts. When rounding to the nearest 10, numbers ending in 5 have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias.

Nuclear Weapons

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the availability of the skills necessary in the UK to enable the construction of submarines for the Trident project.

Des Browne: Such an assessment was set out in Section B of the White Paper, "Defence Industrial Strategy" (Cm 6697) published in December 2005, copies of which are available in the Library of the House. The Ministry of Defence also participated fully in the House of Commons Defence Committee's recent investigation into the Manufacturing and Skills Base. Their report, "The Future of the UK's Strategic Nuclear Deterrent: the Manufacturing and Skills Base" (HC 59) was published on 19 December.

School Cadet Forces

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been made by Sir Ian Russell on raising funds for cadet forces in schools; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: I have been asked to reply.
	In June 2006, the Government announced funding for the creation of six new state school cadet units. The new units will be set up for three-year pilot periods and will receive initial funding of £800,000 in 2007-08. The pilot expansion of cadet forces will be funded by Government, with a view to consideration of continued expansion of the cadet forces in future years.
	When V, the national youth volunteering organisation, was launched in May, Sir Ian Russell stepped down as the interim chair of the organisation established to take forward the recommendations of the Russell Commission report on youth action and engagement. Sir Ian Russell is therefore no longer involved in fundraising from the private sector to support youth action.

Stores Management

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how many IT systems are used for the management of stores in the armed forces;
	(2)  what plans he has to integrate the different IT systems for the management of stores in the armed forces.

Adam Ingram: The effective management of stores involves the assimilation of considerable quantities of information from a wide variety of sources. The MOD currently operates six major supply systems, seven major inventory systems and six major warehousing systems. Currently there is considerable integration within the single services and some integration across the services.
	In light of experience during operations in Iraq in 2003 the Support Chain Programme was established to modernise and make significant improvements in the integration of the different information systems utilised for the management of stores, to drive forward change in logistic and engineering information systems and to provide a robust governance framework for the management of new projects and existing systems.
	The Programme is focussing initially on delivering improved operational capability to the Front Line, with major changes to Base systems following on later.
	Under the Support Chain Programme the six major supply systems are due to reduce to one over the next few years. Work is also in hand to achieve similar reductions in inventory and warehousing systems. The programme will integrate both legacy and future information systems to retain coherence. To assist this, work is also underway to modernise the means by which applications are able to communicate with one another, with modern technology allowing for the creation of more flexible and intelligent networks. The ultimate aim is to move to a position where MOD is operating a fully integrated stores management system working right across Defence, including industry.

Sudan

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what reports he has received on the recent visit of the US Special Envoy to Darfur; and what reports he has received of the recent meeting between the Special Envoy and the Secretary General of NATO.

Ian McCartney: I have been asked to reply.
	The US Special Representative for Sudan, Andrew Natsios, visited Sudan from 9 to 14 December. He pressed the Sudanese Government to accept the UN support for the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) that had been agreed at the high level meeting in Addis Ababa on 16 November. He also urged them not to obstruct the work of the Ceasefire Commission in Darfur and to resolve their problems with Chad.
	Natsios also visited Malakal in south Sudan. He was prevented from visiting Darfur because of instability there.
	Natsios met representatives of the EU and NATO in Brussels immediately following his visit to Sudan. These meetings focused on the situation on the ground and options for further international involvement.

Bank Charges

James McGovern: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs whether the draft Compensation (Regulated Claims Management Services) Order 2006 will apply to websites that provide free help, support and legal advice for people seeking to claim back what they consider to be excess bank charges.

Bridget Prentice: No. The regulation of claims management services is provided for by Part 2 of the Compensation Act 2006. The Compensation (Regulated Claims Management Services) Order 2006 is aimed at those persons that provide such services on a commercial basis. There are a growing number of firms that for a fee offer to handle consumers complaints against bank charges. It is these firms which will now be required to obtain authorisation under the Act in order to continue to provide regulated claims management services.

Compensation Payments

John Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much in compensation payments was paid by her Department in 2005-06; and what the reason for the payment was in each case.

Bridget Prentice: In 2005-06, the Department for Constitutional Affairs paid out £472,934 in compensation. This total comprises £313,654 for full or part payments for personal injury claims made against the Department, however this total is also inclusive of any cost payments made. To determine the breakdown of compensation and costs would result in disproportionate cost and as such a total figure paid out has been provided.
	The balance of £159,280 was paid out in compensation by the Department for Employment Tribunal settlements, either pre or post hearing. Payments were made in compensation for three claims of unfair dismissal; two cases of sexual harassment; three for unauthorised deductions from salary; three for constructive dismissal and one for race discrimination.

Departmental Equipment

Mark Francois: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many of her Department's  (a) computers and  (b) laptops were stolen in each of the last nine years; and what the total value was of stolen computers and laptops in this period.

Bridget Prentice: The number of computers and laptops stolen during the last nine years is as follows:
	
		
			   Computers  Laptops 
			 1998 4 4 
			 1999 0 4 
			 2000 0 3 
			 2001 6 12 
			 2002 10 16 
			 2003 4 6 
			 2004 21 25 
			 2005 5 18 
			 2006 1 22 
		
	
	The value of the losses are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Freedom of Information Act Fees

Michael Wills: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs 
	(1)  whether a regulatory impact assessment will be carried out on the proposed changes to regulations on Freedom of Information request fees;
	(2)  when she will publish draft regulations setting out the proposed changes to Freedom of Information Act fees;
	(3)  how many responses from  (a) individuals,  (b) organisations and  (c) public authorities her Department has received on its proposals to issue new Freedom of Information Act fees regulations; and which (i) organisations and (ii) authorities have responded.

Bridget Prentice: A consultation document on the proposed changes to the Freedom of Information Act fees Regulations was published on 14 December 2006. Copies of the consultation document have been placed in the Libraries of the House.
	In line with the consultation code of practice set out by the Cabinet Office we will be publishing a list of responses to the document at the end of the consultation period. The consultation document includes a partial regulatory impact assessment.
	The consultation document also includes the draft regulations which would give effect to the changes. The consultation will end on 8 March 2007.

IT Projects

Vincent Cable: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many information technology projects within the responsibility of her Department, its agencies and their predecessors have been cancelled since 1997; what the total cost was of each project at cancellation; and if she will make a statement.

Bridget Prentice: In common with any large organisation, my Department has a range of IT based change projects supporting the Department's strategic business programmes. These programmes are delivered through separate contracts. No contracts for information technology projects within these programmes have been cancelled since 1997.

Legal Aid

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what representations she has received on proposals to reintroduce means testing for legal aid in magistrates court.

Vera Baird: Since 2 October my Department has received approximately 20 letters from MPs on behalf of solicitors and an additional 33 direct from solicitors. There is abundant support for means testing in principle and the majority of correspondents have raised practical concerns about the operation of test. Many of these concerns have already been addressed in changes I announced before Christmas, and implementation is being kept under review.

Legal Aid

John Spellar: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much was paid in legal aid to Leigh Day and Company in each of the last five years.

Vera Baird: The information is in the process of being extracted. I will write to the hon. Member as soon as it is available.

Parliamentary Questions

David Laws: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what target her Department has for the maximum acceptable amount of time to answer parliamentary written questions; and what percentage of parliamentary answers met that target in each parliamentary session since 2001.

Vera Baird: It is my Department's aim to answer all parliamentary questions within the timescales specified by Parliament which is named day questions on the day named, and ordinary written questions within a working week.
	During the 2004-05 session, 70 per cent. of parliamentary answers met the parliamentary deadlines. During the 2005-06 session, 60 per cent. of parliamentary answers met the parliamentary deadlines. Information relating to parliamentary sessions before 2004-05 could be provided only at disproportionate cost. This information is available on the public record.

Public Opinion Research

Vincent Cable: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much her Department has spent on commissioning public opinion research in each of the last five years.

Vera Baird: The information requested is not held centrally, and to collect it for five years would present a disproportionate cost. However, please find information for the financial years 2004-05 and 2005-06 as follows.
	DCA spent approximately £1,339,000 (VAT inclusive) on public opinion research contracts during 2005-06, and £1,344,000 in 2004-05.

Collusion Allegations

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of allegations of collusion between the RUC and Loyalist paramilitaries in bombings at  (a) Dundalk in 1975 and  (b) Castleblayney in 1976.

Peter Hain: The Government have consistently made clear that it takes any allegations of collusion very seriously, is committed to seeing that the truth emerges in all cases, that wrongdoers are punished and that we fully understand the Irish Government's position on this. It is the Government's position that criminal investigations led by the police generally represent the best way of achieving this.

Compensation Payments

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much was paid in compensation payments by his Department in 2005-06; and what the reason was for each payment.

Peter Hain: The information in the table refers to all compensation payments paid by the Northern Ireland Office (NIO), excluding its Agencies and NDPBs, in the financial year 2005-06.
	
		
			  Amount of damages paid out by NIO (£)  Date compensation was awarded 
			 30,000 July 2005 
			 6,000 October 2005 
		
	
	As there were two cases only during 2005-06, the reason for payment is suppressed on grounds of confidentiality, as it would make the individual receiving the payment identifiable.

Consultation Exercises

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 
	(1)  how many consultation exercises have been undertaken by each Department in the Northern Ireland Office in the last  (a) six months and  (b) 12 months; and what the cost was of the exercises;
	(2)  how much has been allocated for consultation exercises by each Department in the Northern Ireland Office in 2006-07.

Peter Hain: From December 2005 to December 2006 the Northern Ireland Office carried out 25 consultation exercises. From June 2006 to December 2006 the Northern Ireland Office completed 19 consultation exercises. In general specific budgets are not allocated to consultation exercises as the costs are absorbed into the cost of the policy implementation or administrative spending however divisions have identified where possible costs allocated for any larger consultation exercises planned for 2006-07.
	The following table shows each consultation exercise undertaken by the Northern Ireland Office from December 2005 to December 2006 highlighting the responsible Department, the costs involved and where available the amount allocated for consultations in 2006-07.
	
		
			  £ 
			  Division  Consultation  Cost 2005-06  Budget 2006-07 
			  Policing Division
			 December 2006 Draft Policing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (NI) Order 2007 1,200 to 1,400 (estimated cost) No specific budget allocation for consultation exercises(1) 
			 October 2006 Young People and Licensed Firearms A review of the relevant provisions of the Firearms (NI) Order 2004. 86.01 (1)— 
			 September 2006 Amendments to the Draft Police and Criminal Evidence (Amendment) (NI) Order Specific costs are not available. Costs have been absorbed into existing administrative spending(2) (1)— 
			 September 2006 Police (Northern Ireland) Act 2000 (2)— (1)— 
			 
			  Firearms and Explosives
			 May 2006 New regulations and an approved code of practice and guidance on the manufacture and storage of explosives in Northern Ireland 1,550.17 (1)— 
			 May 2006 Draft Code of Practice for the detention and questioning of persons under section 41 and Schedule 8 of the Terrorism Act 2000 1,786.47 (1)— 
			 
			  Policing Policy Branch
			 May 2006 The Police and Criminal Evidence(Amendment) NI Order 2006 5,755.97 (1)— 
			 May 2006 Police and Criminal Evidence (NI) Order1989—Draft Codes of Practice 2006 3,575.00 (1)— 
			 
			  Youth Justice Policy Unit, CJSD
			 November 2006 Proposals for the Juvenile Justice Centre (NI) Rules 2007 and the Juvenile Justice Centre Order (Supervision) Rules (NI) 2007 200 (1)— 
			 
			  Criminal Law Branch, CJPB
			 November 2006 Road Traffic and Driver Disqualification 1,890.86 Criminal Justice Policy Division has a budget allocation of £57,500 for consultation exercises in 2006-07(3) 
			 November 2006 Making Sure Crime Doesn't Pay Proposals for a new measure to prevent convicted criminals profiting published accounts of their crime 2,372.56 (3)— 
			 October 2006 Consultation on Quashing Convictions 2,245.83 (3)— 
			 September 2006 Contribution towards CSU Knives Summit 1,712.00 (3)— 
			 July 2006 The law on knives in Northern Ireland 2,959.03 (3)— 
			 July 2006 Increasing penalties for deliberate misuse of personal data 2.31 (3)— 
			 May 2006 Proposals to amend the rehabilitation of Offenders (Exceptions) Order (NI) 1979 2,348.87 (3)— 
			 December 2005 Corruption Law Reform/Bribery 1,899.42 (3)— 
			 
			  Criminal Justice Policy Branch
			 September 2006 A Protocol for community based restorative justice schemes 310.63 (3)— 
			 July 2006 Reforming the law on Sexual Offences in Northern Ireland Volume 1 2,503.30 (3)— 
			 July 2006 Reforming the law on Sexual Offences in Northern Ireland Volume 2 As above (3)— 
			 April 2006 Victims and Witnesses of Crime Strategy development seminar (half day) 2,906.98  
			 December 2005 Consultation on draft Guidelines for Community based Restorative Justice Schemes 77.03 (3)— 
			 
			  Human Rights and Equality Unit
			 September 2006 A Forum on a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland—A Consultation Paper (2)— (1)— 
			 
			  Community Safety Unit No consultations during 2005-06 10,000 
			 
			  Security Policy Operations Belfast
			 August 2006 Regulating the Private Security Industry in Northern Ireland (2)— (1)— 
			 August 2006 Replacement arrangements for the Diplock Court System (2)— (1)—

Departmental Staff

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many staff were employed on a consultancy basis in  (a) his Department and  (b) each of its agencies in each of the last five years for which information is available; and what the (i) average and (ii) longest period was for which a consultant was employed in each year.

Peter Hain: The following table shows how many staff were employed on a consultancy basis in the Northern Ireland Office and each of its agencies for each of the last five years. Information for the period 2001-02 and 2002-03 is limited as it is no longer available to all Branches.
	In some cases there was no information held on the number of consultants employed, where this information was not available we recorded the number of consultancy companies employed in the table as follows.
	
		
			   Department/Agency  Staff employed  Consultancy companies employed 
			 2005-06 NIO 50 4 
			 2004-05 NIO 46 2 
			 2003-04 NIO 67 4 
			 2002-03 NIO 18 7 
			 2001-02 NIO 5 1 
			 2005-06 Compensation Agency 1 — 
			 2004-05 Compensation Agency 3 — 
			 2003-04 Compensation Agency 1 — 
			 2002-03 Compensation Agency 1 — 
			 2005-06 NI Prison Service 20 — 
			 2004-05 NI Prison Service 9 — 
			 2005-06 Youth Justice Agency 8 5 
			 2004-05 Youth Justice Agency 7 3 
			 2003-04 Youth Justice Agency 3 1 
			 2005-06 Forensic Science NI 7 — 
			 2004-05 Forensic Science NI 3 — 
			 2003-04 Forensic Science NI 1 — 
			 2002-03 Forensic Science NI 1 — 
			 2001-02 Forensic Science NI 1 — 
		
	
	The average period for which a consultant had been employed each year was:
	
		
			   Months 
			 2001-02 1 
			 2002-03 4.5 
			 2003-04 8 
			 2004-05 8 
			 2005-06 6 
		
	
	The longest period for which a consultant was employed was 12 months for each year except 2001-02 which was four months.

Golden Jubilee Medal

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of those eligible in Northern Ireland to receive HM the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal have not received their medal in each eligible group.

Peter Hain: As far as we are aware all of the armed and emergency services personnel, in Northern Ireland, who were eligible for the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal (and who wished to accept it) have received their medal.

Private Finance Initiative

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the total capital value is of each private finance initiative scheme overseen by his Department which has reached financial close; over what period repayments will take place; and what the total cost of repayment will be.

Peter Hain: The Northern Ireland Office only has one commitment under PFI contract—the Causeway Programme.
	Causeway is a Public Private Partnership (PPP) between Fujitsu Services and the Northern Ireland Office to provide managed services related to the electronic sharing of information across the criminal justice organisations in Northern Ireland. The Programme is implementing a number of services in a number of phases.
	The total capital value of the Causeway scheme (as per NIO Resource Accounts 2005-06) is approximately £9.3 million. This capital value is estimated by independent consultants.
	Repayments will take place over the length of the contract, i.e. 10 years with effect from 28 August 2003 and the cost of these repayments, known as unitary charge payments, is approximately £23.9 million. Unitary charge payments are made for services provided and the annual payment increases as services are made available. The figure quoted is a projection; payments will be affected by the supplier performance and annual indexation (from March 2006). The contract also includes a small number of milestone payments with a total value of £3.4 million.
	A list of all signed private finance initiative deals, with capital values, can be found on the HM Treasury website, available at:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/documents/public_private_partnership/ppp_pfi_stats.cfm

Special Advisers

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what guidance he has issued to his special advisers concerning alterations to their duties during the campaign for the deputy leadership of the Labour party.

Peter Hain: Special advisers act in accordance with the requirements of the "Code of Conduct for Special Advisers". This makes clear that special advisers may assist with a leadership or deputy leadership campaign, but it must be in their own time. In addition, the Cabinet Secretary has issued guidance to Departments on conduct in the run-up to such elections. A copy has been placed in the Library for the reference of Members.

Alcohol-related Conditions

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many adults were admitted into accident and emergency departments in Greater London because of alcohol-related problems in each year since 2003.

Caroline Flint: The following table shows counts of finished admission episodes, in the years 2003-04 to 2004-05, for selected alcohol related diseases and for selected methods of emergency admissions for patients treated in London. Data is shown by strategic health authority (SHA) areas which existed at the time. These SHAs merged on 1 July 2006 to create one London SHA.
	
		
			  Counts of finished admission episodes for ( 1) selected methods of admission where there was a primary diagnosis code for ( 2) selected alcohol related diseases 
			   Aged under 18  Aged 18 and over  Age not known  All ages 
			  Strategic health authority of treatment( 3)  2003-04  2004-05  2003-04  2004-05  2003-04  2004-05  2003-04  2004-05 
			 North West London 100 84 1,068 1,379 11 20 1,179 1,483 
			 North Central London 74 82 801 1,074 11 22 886 1,178 
			 North East London 91 59 1,088 1,251 1 3 1,180 1,313 
			 South East London 88 88 1,306 1,784 — 2 1,394 1,874 
			 South West London 168 156 695 850 1 1 864 1,007 
			 (1 ) Selected Methods of Admission: Emergency (via A & E services including the casualty department of the provider) Emergency (other means, including patients who arrive via A & E department of another healthcare provider) (2 ) Alcohol related diseases defined as following ICD-10 codes recorded in primary diagnosis: F10: Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of alcohol K70: Alcoholic liver disease T51: Toxic effect of alcohol (3 )Strategic Health Authority of Treatment=London Strategic Health Authorities NHS hospitals, England 2003-04 to 2004-05  Notes: 1.  Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. Please note that admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. 2 . Diagnosis (Primary Diagnosis) The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 14 (7 prior to 2002-03) diagnosis fields in the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data set and provides the main reason why the patient was in hospital. 3.  Ungrossed Data Figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data (i.e. the data are ungrossed). 4.  Primary Care Trust (PCT) and Strategic Health Authority (SHA) Data Quality PCT and SHA data was added to historic data-years in the HES database using 2002-03 boundaries, as a one-off exercise in 2004. The quality of the data on PCT of Treatment and SHA of Treatment is poor in 1996-97,1997-98 and 1998-99, with over a third of all finished episodes having missing values in these years. Data quality of PCT of GP practice and SHA of GP practice in 1997-98 and 1998-99 is also poor, with a high proportion missing values where practices changed or ceased to exist. There is less change in completeness of the residence-based fields over time, where the majority of unknown values are due to missing postcodes on birth episodes. Users of time series analysis including these years need to be aware of these issues in their interpretation of the data. 5.  Data Quality Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) are compiled from data sent by over 300 NHS Trusts and Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) in England. The "Health and Social Care Information Centre" liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data via HES processes. Whilst this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain.  Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre.

Correspondence

Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 27 November 2006,  Official Report, column 440W, on correspondence, what progress has been made by the chief executive of NHS West Midlands in ensuring that the hon. Member for West Worcestershire receives a response to his letters of  (a) 22 August and  (b) 17 October, on changes in Worcestershire health service provision.

Caroline Flint: This has already been raised with NHS West Midlands. However, the strategic health authority is still awaiting clarification of some further details to enable it to continue with the necessary enquiries before a reply can be sent to the hon. member.

Dentistry

Clare Short: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what  (a) guidance and  (b) instructions were given by her Department to the Dental Practice Board during the formation of the new system of dental contracts on the calculation of units of dental activity; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: The General Dental Services and Personal Dental Services Transitional Provisions Order 2005 (SI No. 2005/3435) required primary care trusts (PCTs) to calculate the units of dental activity to be provided by the contractor under a generaldental services (CDS) contract by analysing the data held in respect of care and treatment provided bythe contractor during the year 1 October 2004 to30 September 2005, categorising that care and treatment in accordance with Schedules 1 to 4 of the National Health Service Dental Charges Regulations and converting into units of dental activity by reference to the criteria specified in Part 1 of Schedule 2 to the GDS Contracts Regulations. The primary care trust (PCT) was then required to reduce the number of units of dental activity so calculated by 5 per cent. The Department arranged for the then Dental Practice Board to undertake these functions on behalf of PCTs.
	Similar provisions applied in the case of contractors providing services under a personal dental services (PDS) agreement, but with provision for PCTs and contractors to agree the appropriate number of units of dental activity where data did not exist for the reference period or where it was appropriate to adjust the data.

Gershon Review

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much in efficiency savings has been made in her Department and its associated public bodies as a result of the Gershon Review; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: Up to September 2006 we had achieved total savings of £3,700 million.
	A more detailed breakdown of these savingshas been provided in the Department's autumn performance report published on 11 December and is available in the Library.

Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance she has given officials at the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency on attendance at  (a) UK and  (b) international conferences on standards; and how much has been allocated for such attendance in 2006-07. [R]

Ivan Lewis: The Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) are responsible for ensuring that medical devices placed on the United Kingdom market meet the appropriate levels of safety and quality.
	In order to do so they must meet the relevant essential requirements of the appropriate directive. One way to achieve this is for the device to meet the requirements of the relevant mandated European standard, where one exists. However, the use of standards is voluntary and a manufacture can if he so wishes demonstrate compliance with the essential requirements by adopting other technical solutions.
	Funding for devices work is provided in line with a service level agreement made between the MHRA and the Department. The participation in standards development, at either UK or international level, is not included in the 2006-07 agreement.

NHS Trusts: Prompt Payment

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the promptness of payments to suppliers by NHS trusts; what mechanisms are in place to monitor their performance in this regard; and if she will take steps to ensure that NHS trusts keep to contract terms in paying suppliers. [R]

Andy Burnham: In 2005-06 national health service trusts paid 78 per cent. of non NHS bills within30 days or contract terms. This is the most recent period for which figures are available.
	The Department requires NHS trusts to comply with the Confederation of British Industry's Better Payment Practice Code (BPPC) which sets a target of paying95 per cent. of undisputed invoices within contract terms or 30 days where no terms have been agreed.
	It is the responsibility of strategic health authorities to monitor the performance of individual national health service bodies, report this performance to the Department and work with poor performing organisations to achieve and maintain a level of payment performance consistent with government accounting regulations and the Better Payment Practice Code target.

Private Finance Initiative Projects

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been spent by her Department on private finance initiative projects postponed pending further consideration or stopped in the last 12 months.

Andy Burnham: The Department announced on the 18 January 2006 that it would be reviewing all private finance initiative schemes yet to reach financial close and with an expected capital value of greater than£75 million. The purpose of the review process is to deliver schemes that are financially viable and sustainable over the long-term, and in pursuit of achieving these objectives certain schemes have experienced limited delays.
	In conducting the review process, the Department has so far incurred costs of £220,271. These costs do not include any incurred by the trusts themselves.

Prostate Cancer

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made on the prostate cancer awareness campaign pilot announced in 2005; and when she expects to make a decision on the national roll-out of the scheme.

Rosie Winterton: The Department has collaborated with the prostate cancer charter for action to fund a pilot public awareness programme on the prostate and its function. The Department provided £100,000 towards the pilot, with signatories to the charter providing a further £50,000.
	The pilot took place in Coventry in October 2006, and an independent evaluation is now assessing the effectiveness of the messages used in the pilot, the interventions used to promote the messages, andthe impact the pilot has had on national health service services. The evaluation is expected to report in early 2007. The learning from this pilot will help us in deciding the way forward on the public awareness of prostate cancer.

Public Involvement

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the model contract on the role for local involvement networks and their relationships with local authorities will be set out.

Rosie Winterton: The Government response document to "A Stronger Local Voice", published on Monday 11 December, provides some detail about the proposed model contract between local authorities and the hosts of Local Involvement Networks. This contract is being developed with the involvement of stakeholders and will be consulted upon in the new year. The Government response document to "A Stronger Local Voice" is available in the Library and can be found at the following website address:
	www.dh.gov.uk/PublicationsAndStatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidanceArticle/fs/en?CONTENT_ID=4141027&amp;chk=YeQaBl

Statins

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what evidence her Department has assessed on the effectiveness of statins in reducing the five-year incidence of  (a) major coronary events and  (b) stroke; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  if she will assess the likely savings in health care costs which would result from lowering mean low density lipopropein cholesterol levels by one millimol per litre in the population at high risk of  (a) coronary diseases and  (b) cerebrovascular disease; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Effectiveness (NICE) published a health technology appraisal (HTA) on statins in January 2006. This took account of all available evidence and concluded that it was both clinically- and cost-effective to intervene with statin therapy in patients who scored a 20 per cent. or greater 10-year risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD), regardless of the starting cholesterol. This updates the national service framework for coronary heart disease (CHD) which had set the threshold for intervention at a 30 per cent. 10-year risk of CHD, both by lowering the intervention threshold and by including the range of vascular conditions—including cerebrovascular disease—which are together termed CVD.
	More details can be found on the NICE website at:
	www.nice.org.uk
	Cost-effectiveness estimates vary as costs change. The cost of generic statins came down sharply while the HTA was in preparation and has dropped again since its publication. The NICE website therefore includes a tool which the national health service can use to determine current cost-effectiveness in their local health economies.

Bangladesh

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps her Department is taking to urge restraint and compromise among Bangladesh's political parties and to defuse tension ahead of the national parliamentary elections.

Kim Howells: We continue to take a very close interest in the political process and preparations for the elections due in Bangladesh. My right hon. Friend the Minister of State for Trade, Investment and Foreign Affairs (Mr. McCartney), during a visit to Dhaka in November, emphasised to the leaders of the main parties the need for responsible leadership and restraint. Officials from our high commission in Dhaka continue to press the political parties to act positively and constructively towards ensuring free, fair and accepted elections. Our high commissioner in Dhaka did so most recently when he met the leaders of the main parties on 24 December and on 1 January.

Nangpala Incident

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports she has received on the incident at Nangpala on 30 September 2006.

Ian McCartney: The EU urged the Chinese Government to investigate the incident at the Nangpa Pass, at the last round of the EU-China Human Rights Dialogue, held in Beijing on 19 October 2006. The Chinese Government confirmed that the incident had taken place and promised to give further information. The EU followed up on 19 December and was told by the Chinese authorities that the incident was a border management issue and there was nothing new to report. The Chinese Government said it is doing its utmost to take care of all those involved, with a special emphasis on the well-being of the children.

Overseas Missions

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  how many visa applications were  (a) received by post and  (b) made in person at British Missions overseas in the latest year for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many visa applications were  (a) received by post and  (b) made in person at  (a) the British Embassy, Beijing,  (b) the British Consulate General, Shanghai,  (c) the British Consulate General, Guangzhou,  (d) the British Consulate General, Chongqing and  (e) all British Missions in China in the latest year for which figures are available.

Ian McCartney: The information requested by the hon. Member is set out as follows:
	
		
			   Applications for FY 2005-06  Applications for FY 2006-07 (April-November 2006) 
			   By post  In person  By post  In person 
			 Global 207,495 1,099,454 142,790 519,300 
			  Post 
			 Beijing 7 261 4 1,161 
			 Chongqing 0 1,437 0 1,622 
			 Guangzhou 0 4,291 6 3,996 
			 Shanghai 5 467 2 261 
			  Country 
			 China 12 19,680 2,907 18,341 
			  Note: The total figures for China include the Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong.  Source: Monthly Statistical Report

Somalia

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of recent conflict in Mogadishu; what steps she is taking with  (a) the EU,  (b) the UN and  (c) bilateral relationships, to prevent escalated conflict in Somalia; and what discussions she has held with the (i) Ethiopian Government and (ii) Somali Government based in Baidoa.

Ian McCartney: We are concerned about the conflict in Somalia. With our international partners we are working actively to promote a peaceful resolution to Somalia's difficulties on the basis of a sustainable peace process.
	We have frequent bilateral contacts with the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia and countries in the region including Ethiopia. We are working closely with EU partners and in the UN Security Council to achieve peace and stability in Somalia.
	We urge rapid implementation of the UN Security Council Resolution 1725, adopted unanimouslyon 6 December 2006, which authorises the Intergovernmental Authority on Development and the African Union to establish a protection and training mission in Somalia. In this regard, we look forward to Ethiopia withdrawing its troops from Somalia as quickly as it can, as it has stated it wants to.
	We are also encouraging all parties inside and outside Somalia to use the current opportunity to embed a political process across Somalia as envisaged in the Transitional Federal Charter. We will support the Transitional Federal Institutions and Transitional Federal Government in pursuing this.

Zimbabwe

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reportsshe has received of the possible postponementof Zimbabwe's presidential elections; and what discussions she has had with  (a) the UK Embassy in Harare and  (b) her counterparts in other countries on those reports.

Ian McCartney: At their December Party conference, ZANU(PF) took note of a resolution to postpone the presidential elections to 2010 and merge them with the parliamentary elections. The resolution has now been referred to the ZANU(PF) Central Committee. We are concerned that Mugabe will use this resolution to extend his current term of office from 2008 to 2010 reference to the Zimbabwean people. Our embassy in Harare discussed the ZANU(PF) Conference with other EU Heads of Mission on19 December.
	It is clear that what Zimbabwe requires is a truly democratically elected government that is determined to work for its people, and is committed to economic and governance reform: the economy has shrunk by30 per cent. in the last five years; young Zimbabweans will be lucky to live past their 40th birthday; those made homeless by Operation Murambatsvina are living in poor, overcrowded conditions without proper access to food and medicine; and law enforcement authorities continue to respond to peaceful demonstrators with brutal violence and torture. Whoever governs Zimbabwe, it is clear that a dramatic change of policy direction is required.

Council Houses

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what factors were taken into account when setting the cap on the discount available to council house residents in the North West who buy their homes; what assessment was made of variations in house prices between areas in the North West when setting the cap; and if she will take steps to adjust the cap annually in line with house price inflation.

Yvette Cooper: Decisions on the discount in the North West took account of average house prices in the region and the results of the consultation in 1997 and 1998.
	The Government have no plans to change uprating to Right to Buy discount limits. However, it has invited local authorities to consider offering those tenantswho are unable to afford outright ownership the opportunity to purchase a share in their homes, under the new Social HomeBuy scheme which it introduced in April 2006. Local authorities may retain all the receipts from sales under Social HomeBuy, to reinvest in affordable housing.

Departmental Staff

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what her Department's annual budget is for employing workers on a consultancy basis; and how much of this budget was used in each of the last five years for which records are available.

Angela Smith: The information requested is set out in the following table.
	Communities and Local Government has engaged external professional services to provide advice, and specialist design, development and implementation skills in response to the need to develop sustainable homes and communities. The skills required were not available from civil servants.
	Specialist skills including project management, finance, engineering, technology specification, building specification and design, security and resilience have been engaged to support the delivery of projects to enhance the ability of the Fire and Rescue Service to respond to major incidents. The work undertaken includes radio engineering expertise for the new radio systems for the Fire and Rescue Service; also, logistical support and design for responding to chemical, biological, radioactive or nuclear incident, and search and rescue incidents. Around 60 per cent. of expenditure has been in support of these projects.
	
		
			  Financial year  Budget (£)  Spend (£) 
			 2006-07 64,376,748 (1)31,844,679 
			 2005-06 60,115,563 53,000,000 
			 2004-05 81,518,452 80,000,000 
			 2003-04 n/a 47,000,000 
			 2002-03 n/a n/a 
			 (1 )To date

Expanded Open Market HomeBuy Scheme

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the budget is for the Expanded Open Market HomeBuy scheme in each region for each of the next five years; and how many people have  (a) completed purchase of a house through the scheme and  (b) attended (i) a financial interview with a financial adviser and (ii) presentations as compulsory elements of the application process for the scheme in each month since its launch.

Yvette Cooper: The Expanded Open Market HomeBuy scheme was launched on 2 October 2006. The following table sets out the current budget for the Expanded Open Market HomeBuy scheme in each region between October 2006 and March 2008.
	
		
			  £ million 
			  Region  Expanded Open Market HomeBuy (funding allocation, October 2006 to March 2008) 
			 East Midlands 3.0 
			 West Midlands 4.6 
			 East of England 26.3 
			 South East 73.1 
			 London 107.0 
			 South West 7.1 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 2.0 
			 North East 0.7 
			 North West 6.3 
			 Total 230 
		
	
	Funding for the scheme beyond March 2008 to 2011 will be decided following the next spending review.
	The scheme was launched at the beginning of October so only limited figures are available. 4,000 households have been accepted by HomeBuy agentson to the scheme already since it was launched just10 weeks ago and are now looking for properties or beginning the process of buying a home. The first42 households have been approved to exchange on their property and the first five households have completed their sales just 10 weeks after the programme was launched. We expect to help up to 10,000 households through the scheme by the end of March 2008.
	We do not hold information centrally on the number of applicants who have attended a presentation and/or an interview with a financial adviser to undergo a financial assessment as part of the application process.
	All applicants to the Expanded Open Market HomeBuy scheme will receive information on the low cost home ownership options available to them, and undergo a financial assessment—along with other eligibility checks—before being accepted on to the scheme, but different HomeBuy agents will fulfil these functions in different ways depending on local circumstances, and the scale of delivery in their area.
	Those HomeBuy agents handling large number of applications tend to ask applicants to first attend a presentation on low cost home ownership opportunities in their area, before they visit a financial adviser to undergo the financial check. Those operating on a smaller scale tend to direct applicants to their website for further information, and conduct financial checks in-house.
	Once applicants are accepted on to the scheme, they are strongly recommended to visit a financial adviser of their choosing, before making the decision to proceed with a purchase

Local Government Pensions

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what progress has been made in discussions between the Local Government Association and the Local Government Employers group in introducing new pension scheme arrangements in England and Wales for local government; and how existing members of local government pension schemes are protected under transitional arrangements;
	(2)  what protection is available for existingmembers of the local government pension schemesin England and Wales; and what the cut-off date isfor full protection for schemes in England and Wales.

Phil Woolas: Since making my written Statement to the House on 23 November 2006 I am aware that several stakeholders, including the Local Government Association and the Local Government Employers, have made good progress in discussions about the reform proposals for a new-look Local Government Pension Scheme. Draft regulations to give effect to my Statement were issued for analysis and comment on22 December 2006. The closing date for responses is27 February 2007.
	Other things being equal, the transitional protections effective from 1 October 2006 mean that all members of the Scheme at 30 September 2006 will continue to accrue rights up to 31 March 2008, as if the discriminatory provision had not been removed. Beyond 1 April 2008, members who are 60 and would have satisfied the rule of 85 by 31 March 2016,will be fully protected. Between 1 April 2016 and31 March 2020, actuarial reductions on rightsaccruing from 1 April 2007 will be phased in to overcome the cliff edge effect for members born either side of a cut off date. It is also proposed in the current consultation that all members of the Scheme willenjoy an improved accrual rate for membership from1 April 2008.

Planning

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will end the practice of allowing repeat planning applications for the same site.

Yvette Cooper: Local planning authorities have the power to decline to determine a repeat application where it is the same or similar to an application that has been turned down previously and where they believe it is being submitted to wear down opposition to a development proposal. The power can be exercised where a previous application has been called in and refused by the Secretary of State or has been dismissed on appeal and, since 24 August 2005, where there has been no call in or appeal subject to there having been at least two similar applications refused in the pasttwo years.

Regeneration

Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what funding was provided directly by her Department and its predecessor to local authorities in England to support regeneration projects in each year from 2001-02 to 2005-06; and what funding has been allocated for 2006-07 and 2007-08.

Phil Woolas: The Department for Communities and Local Government and its predecessor, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has provided funding to local authorities totalling £3.075 billion for regeneration projects during the period 2001-02 to 2005-06, and has allocated £1.837 billion for theperiod 2006-07 to 2007-08. A more detailedbreakdown of this funding is shown in the following annex (a).
	
		
			  Annex (A): Funding provided by ODPM & DCLG For local authorities to support regeneration projects in England, 2001-06 and allocations for 2006-07 - 2007-08 
			  £ million 
			   Actual expenditure  Allocation  Provision  
			  Programme name  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  Overall total 
			 Neighbourhood Renewal Fund (NRF) 200 300 400 450 525 525 — 2,400 
			 Neighbourhood Management Pathfinders (NMPs) 3 7 14 22 19 — — 65 
			 New Deal for Communities (NDCs) 81 178 239 283 274 277 250 1,582 
			 Wardens 10 19 24 20 8 — — 80 
			 Local Area Agreements (LAAs) — — — — — 110 635 745 
			 Safer Stronger Communities Fund (SSCF) — — — — — 40 — 40 
			 Overall totals for ODPM and DCLG 294 504 677 775 826 952 885 4,912 
			 Notes: 1. CENs, NMPs, Neighbourhood Element and LEGI all absorbed by LAAs from 2006-07 onwards. 2. NRF and SSCF absorbed by LAAs from 2007/08 onwards. Source: Kurt Horder (P&C LMAT) - 2/1/2007

Regeneration: Liverpool

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much her Department spent on regeneration projects in Liverpool in each year since 1997; which projects received more than £5 million; what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of each project; and what funding she has allocated for future regeneration projects in Liverpool.

Yvette Cooper: Since 1997, Liverpool has seen significant improvements in housing, infrastructure and economic and social development. Last year (2005-06) through New Heartlands, the Housing Market Renewal (HMR) scheme, there were in excess of 1,300 new homes constructed and over 1,600 homes refurbished in Liverpool. There was also an additional £10.5 million of private sector funding invested within the Liverpool pathfinder area, of which £4.2 million went specifically into HMR projects.
	Liverpool John Lennon airport, one of the fastest growing airports in the UK, received European objective 1 funding towards increasing terminal capacity and improving passenger and public transport facilities. The airport is a key economic driver in the regeneration of the area, and direct on and off-site employment at the airport has risen from 500 employees in 1997 to 2,350 in 2005.
	Under the 2000-06 Programme of European objective 1 funding in Merseyside, over 1,700 projects have been approved, in excess of 37,000 jobs have been created and over 6,000 business start-ups have been assisted.
	Social improvements are demonstrated by the city's progress towards narrowing the gap against key national floor target indicators. Particular progress has been made in education, housing and liveability, which has seen the gap reduce from 11.3 in 2003-04 to8.6 in 2004-05. Furthermore, the overall Liverpool employment rate has increased at a higher rate than the UK average, 1.3 per cent. compared to 0.3 per cent.
	In addition, GVA growth in Liverpool (1998 to 2003) outstripped the national average rate. Liverpool has also seen a significant expansion in knowledge-based employment and benefited from substantial private sector investment in its tourism infrastructure.
	The total funding Communities and Local Government has invested in Liverpool for regeneration projects since 1997 is in excess of £670 million. Additionally Liverpool is also eligible to benefit from a further £393.3 million which Communities and Local Government has invested into the wider Merseyside region. The European objective 1 programme (2000-06) also provides a further £910 million for investment in Merseyside and Liverpool will benefit from this investment.
	We do not hold the total figures of regeneration spend for Liverpool in every funding stream since 1997 on an annual basis. However, the following table details the main regeneration funding since 1997, available directly to Liverpool or from which Liverpool can benefit.
	
		
			   Regeneration funding 
			 New Deal for Communities: 10-year scheme: £62 million in Kensington, Liverpool (ends 2010) 
			 Neighbourhood Renewal Fund: £167.76 million 2001—eight including a residual NRF allocation 
			 Community Empowerment Networks £6.1 million over six years 2001 to 2007 paid to CVS as Accountable Body. £519,185 in final year paid through Safer, Stronger Communities Fund 
			 Neighbourhood Element/Cleaner Safer Greener Element £4.7 million 2006-10 for Neighbourhood Element. £2.1 million 2006-08 Cleaner Safer Greener element. Both paid through the Safer Stronger Communities Fund 
			 Housing Market Renewal Pathfinder £184 million 2004-08 covering inner Liverpool, South Sefton and Birkenhead/Tranmere in Wirral. Paid in two tranches, £86 million in the first and £98 million in the second 
			 Liverpool Housing Action Trust £260 million 1992 to 2005 
			 Liverpool Vision URC £167.8 million 1999-2007. Funding from English Partnerships (£63.5 million) and North West Development Agency (£104.3 million) 
			 English Partnerships (Merseyside) £85.1 million on major strategic investment projects and HMR-related activity up to 2008 
			 NWDA (Merseyside) £56.2 million on major strategic investment projects 
			 Single Regeneration Budget £68 million 1999 to 2007 (NWDA) 
		
	
	European money is routed via Government Office for the North West on behalf of Whitehall departments, and during the period specified the following major projects, administered on behalf of Communities and Local Government, received grant funding in excess of £5 million. Additionally, three European projects valued at over £5 million, administered on behalf of DTI and DFT, also benefited Liverpool.
	
		
			  European objective 1 (2000-06), Communities and Local Government projects over £5 million grant 
			  £ 
			  Project name  Total cost  ERDF( 1)  grant 
			 Kings Waterfront Redevelopment—Phase 2 131,100,000 45,962,000 
			 Liverpool Neighbourhood Renewal Programme 32,000,000 16,000,000 
			 Liverpool South Parkway 32,000,000 10,823,000 
			 Merseytram Pre Development Costs Lines 1, 2 and 3 20,876,258 10,438,129 
			 NWDA—Edge Lane Acquisitions 20,839,336 10,419,668 
			 Centre For Tropical and Infectious Diseases (CTID) 24,100,828 9,000,000 
			 New Anfield—Stanley Park Regeneration 24,631,214 9,000,000 
			 Edge Lane Improvement Scheme 27,750,000 8,262,000 
			 Airport Development Phase III 21,500,000 7,852,646 
			 Cruise Liner Facility Construction and Operation 16,856,502 7,089,540 
			 The Liverpool Canal Link 16,848,330 6,739,332 
			 Capital of Culture Phase 3 14,844,183 5,126,713 
			 Museum of Liverpool 31,831,000 5,000,000 
			 Liverpool Airport Phase IV Development 12,500,000 5,000,000 
			 Sentinel and Unity (Sentinel Office/Mixed Use Development) 26,605,891 5,000,000 
		
	
	
		
			  £ 
			  Project name  Total cost  ESF( 2)  grant 
			 LNRP Measure 27 12,000,000 6,000,000 
			 LNRP Measure 26 11,600,000 5,800,000 
			 LNRP Measure 25 11,200,000 5,600,000 
			 (1) European Regional Development Fund. (2) European Social Fund. 
		
	
	During the 1994-99 programme, £8 million of ERDF grant was allocated to the Liverpool Airport Development Phase 2.
	Additionally, the following table details the funding granted to wider Merseyside projects, which will also benefit Liverpool.
	
		
			  £ 
			  Project name  Total cost  ERDF grant 
			 Special Investment Fund 2 99,039,000 36,000,000 
			 Extension to ERDF Project 00/41 By the Addition of the Liver 26,700,000 20,000,000 
			 Business Growth and Development for Greater Merseyside 30,037,256 12,007,746 
			 Merseyside: Growing with confidence 15,000,000 6,000,000 
			 Make It Merseyside 13,290,000 5,296,000 
		
	
	
		
			  £ 
			  Project name  Total cost  ESF grant 
			 GMLSC—Merseyside Measure 15 29,200,000 14,600,000 
			 GMLSC—Merseyside Measure 14 24,807,237 11,113,642 
			 LSCGM 2005-08 Measure 4 30,030,030 10,000,000 
			 LSCGM 2005-08 Measure 12 30,030,030 10,000,000 
			 GMLSC Measure 4 29,948,000 9,840,000 
			 GMLSC Measure 12 26,998,770 8,854,629 
			 LSCGM—Merseyside 2005-08 13,000,000 6,500,000 
		
	
	In respect of European investment, of the funding that remains to be formally approved under the 2000-06 programme, around £24 million has been allocated for future regeneration projects in Liverpool, although, the projects earmarked to take up this funding have yet to be formally appraised and approved.
	A further €468 million of European Competitiveness, Phasing-in funding, has been allocated to the whole of Merseyside for the 2007-13 Programming period, of which €281 million is ERDF and €187 million is ESF. At this stage it is not possible to estimate what proportion of the funding will be invested in Liverpool.
	In terms of evaluation, each of these European projects have been subject to detailed and rigorous appraisal prior to funding being agreed. After that, during the implementation phase, they are subject to performance monitoring by the responsible agencies and in many cases audit. In addition, the programmes themselves are subject to review and evaluation, in order to ensure they are yielding the outputs and outcomes expected. The effectiveness of each European Programme as a whole is also reviewed at its halfway stage through a comprehensive 'Mid-term Evaluation' and on closure through an 'Ex-post Evaluation'.
	All other programmes are subject to monitoring and evaluation to review the effectiveness of the investment, for example, Communities and Local Government have not long concluded an evaluation of the URC, Liverpool Vision.

Renewable Energy

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 4 December 2006,  Official Report, column 185W, on renewable energy, what figure this represents as a percentage of total kWh used by her Department; and what plans her Department has to increase the amount of energy acquired from renewable sources.

Angela Smith: On 12 June 2006 my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs announced new sustainable operations targets for the Government Estate. Government Departments are mandated within the new targets to source at least 10 per cent. of electricity from renewables (such as wind, wave, tidal, solar, thermal and photovoltaics (PV's)) by March 2008.
	In the year 2005-06, the amount of renewable energy as a percentage of total kWh used by the Department is as follows:
	
		
			  Renewable energy consumed (kWh) 
			   Percentage 
			 Headquarter buildings 99 
			 Agencies 52 
		
	
	These figures have yet to undergo independent verification and so must be regarded as provisional.
	This answer does not include the buildings occupied by Government Offices, who carry out functions on behalf of 10 Government Departments.
	Communities and Local Government and its Agencies review the proportion of energy purchased from renewable resources on an annual basis. This review takes into consideration factors such as cost, market forces and Government commitments.

Repossessions and Evictions

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many privately owned houses have been repossessed in the past three years; how many evictions there were from private rented accommodation over the same period; what assessment she has made of the reasons for each; and if she will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: The Department for Constitutional Affairs collect data relating to mortgage and landlord possession actions in county courts for England and Wales. The data cover both local authority and private mortgages and social and private landlord actions. The figures do not indicate how many houses have been possessed through the courts either by mortgage lenders or landlords.
	The number of possessions of mortgaged properties in the UK is available on the Council of Mortgage Lenders website at:
	http://www.cml.org.uk/cml/filegrab/lAP4.xls?ref=2753
	A copy has been placed in the Library of the House.
	The figures since 1990 are as follows:
	
		
			  Properties taken into possession in period 
			   Number  Percentage of all loans 
			 1990 43,890 0.47 
			 1991 75,540 0.77 
			 1992 68,540 0.69 
			 1993 58,540 0.58 
			 1994 49,210 0.47 
			 1995 49,410 0.47 
			 1996 42,560 0.40 
			 1997 32,770 0.31 
			 1998 33,870 0.31 
			 1999 29,990 0.27 
			 2000 22,870 0.20 
			 2001 17,310 0.15 
			 2002 11,970 0.11 
			 2003 7,700 0.07 
			 2004 6,030 0.05 
			 2005 10,310 0.09

"Responsibility to Protect"

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he is taking to implement the United Nations' policy initiative "Responsibility to Protect".

Gareth Thomas: The "responsibility to protect" concept, endorsed at the 2005 UN World Summit, made clear that individual states hold the primary responsibility to protect their own populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. The international community also confirmed its readiness to act, collectively, to prevent and stop such crimes, through the United Nations. Such action includes using appropriate diplomatic, humanitarian and other peaceful means, including sanctions. On a case by case basis, should peaceful means be inadequate and national authorities manifestly fail to protect their populations, the UN Security Council may authorise the use of force.
	Since the World Summit, the UN Security Council has adopted resolutions on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict and on Darfur, both of which refer to the World Summit agreement on the responsibility to protect. In addressing the situation in Darfur, we have also: used diplomacy and applied political pressure; reminded the Sudanese Government of their own responsibility to the people of Darfur; worked through the Security Council to apply sanctions; referred the situation in Darfur to the International Criminal Court; and are working on UN support to the African Union Mission in Sudan.
	Through the Global Conflict Prevention Pool, the UK is also supporting an NGO network to raise the profile of responsibility to protect with national governments and civil society, particularly in Africa.
	The Government will continue to advocate appropriate and speedy responses—bilaterally, within the EU and UN, and at the Security Council—to protect vulnerable populations against genocide,war crimes, crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing.

Aid Expenditure

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what percentage of UK's GDP was used for international aid in each of the last 10 years.

Hilary Benn: International Aid figures are reported as a percentage of Gross National Income (GNI) and the UK figures for the last 10 years are listed in the following table.
	Further information on UK international aid as a percentage of GNI is published in Table 5 of "Statistics on International Development 2001/02-2005/06", a copy of which is available in the Library.
	
		
			   Official development assistance (ODA)  Other official flows (OOF)  Official aid( 1)  Total  GNI  Total as a percentage of GNI 
			 1996 2,050 52 232 2,334 762,853 0.31 
			 1997 2,096 -69 206 2,233 811,797 0.28 
			 1998 2,332 -33 262 2,561 869,706 0.29 
			 1999 2,118 -15 252 2,355 904,737 0.26 
			 2000 2,974 -47 290 3,217 954,054 0.34 
			  1,005  
			 2001 3,179 2 320 3,501 313 0.35 
			  1,069  
			 2002 3,281 -3 329 3,607 839 0.34 
			  1,132  
			 2003 3,847 30 428 4,306 938 0.38 
			  1,202  
			 2004 4,302 -85 455 4,672 075 0.39 
			  1,253  
			 2005 5,923 -54 416 6,285 561 0.50 
			 (1 )Official Aid ceased to exist from 2005 for OECD-DAC reporting purposes. However, the UK Government still give aid to countries that would previously been classified as Official Aid, such as Russia and new EU member countries.

Aid Expenditure

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much the Government has spent on aid projects in  (a) Afghanistan and  (b) Iraq in each of the last five years.

Hilary Benn: UK Bilateral Aid and the Imputed share of Multilateral Expenditure for Afghanistan and Iraq for each of the last five years for which data is available is set out in the following tables.
	The full breakdown of Bilateral Aid is published in Table 12.3 of "Statistics on International Development 2001/02-2005/06", a copy of which is available in the Library.
	
		
			  Table 1: Total spending in Afghanistan and Iraq over the last five years 
			  £000 
			   Development assistance( 1)  Humanitarian assistance  Total DFID bilateral programme  Aid from other UK official sources( 2)  Total bilateral gross public expenditure 
			  Afghanistan  
			 2001-02 53 49,943 49,996 31 50,027 
			 2002-03 30,292 44,253 74,546 1,472 76,018 
			 2003-04 69,225 10,457 79,683 19,912 99,595 
			 2004-05 72,522 7,067 79,589 19,370 98,959 
			 2005-06 95,040 3,390 98,430 28,519 126,949 
			   
			  Iraq( 3)  
			 2001-02 — 7,760 7,760 — 7,760 
			 2002-03 — 18,853 18,853 — 18,853 
			 2003-04 99,261 110,052 209,313 5,000 214,313 
			 2004-05 27,724 21,383 49,107 342,400 391,507 
			 2005-06 82,105 4,764 86,869 339,380 426,249 
			 (1) Includes financial aid, technical cooperation, grants and aid in kind, and total DFID debt relief. (2) Includes non-DFID debt relief, British Council, and the Global Conflict Pool. (3 )Recorded flows to Iraq before 2003-04 are humanitarian assistance provided through UN agencies and Civil Society Organisations for Iraqi citizens. No aid was provided to the Government of Iraq during that period.  Source: Statistics on International Development 2001/02 - 2005/06. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2 : Imputed multilateral shares for Afghanistan and Iraq 
			  £ million 
			   EC  Other  UN  World Bank  Grand total 
			  Afghanistan  
			 2000 2.6 0.0 1.3 0.0 4.0 
			 2001 5.4 0.0 1.3 0.0 6.7 
			 2002 11.5 2.9 2.1 0.0 16.5 
			 2003 14.3 3.0 1.4 0.0 18.7 
			 2004 21.3 1.5 4.0 0.0 26.7 
			   
			  Iraq  
			 2000 1.1 0.0 0.4 0.0 1.4 
			 2001 1.3 0.0 0.4 0.0 1.8 
			 2002 1.0 0.0 0.7 0.0 1.7 
			 2003 4.2 0.0 1.1 0.0 5.3 
			 2004 13.8 0.0 0.5 0.0 14.3

AIDS

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the impact of the outcome of the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions talks with pharmaceutical companies on the availability of affordable HIV/AIDS treatments in  (a) developing countries and  (b) least developed countries.

Gareth Thomas: We welcome any serious attempt at getting AIDS drugs more accessible and affordable for those who need them. Partnerships between employers, unions and manufacturers are an integral part of what is needed to see progress in tackling HIV and AIDS in developing countries.
	We have not made a detailed assessment of the impact of the outcome of the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions talks with pharmaceutical companies onthe availability of affordable HIV/AIDS treatments.We would certainly encourage the pharmaceutical sector to do all it can to make essential drugsmore easily available and affordable to poorcountries.
	This is why in 2005, the Department for International Development (DFID) published a framework for good practice in the pharmaceutical industry to help increase access to essential medicines that treat diseases of poverty including HIV/AIDS in all developing countries. DFID continues to subscribe to the framework's principles and welcomes all efforts to improve both access and affordability, including through differential pricing and negotiating agreements to lower the price of HIV/AIDS treatments. Our support to UNITAID, the new drug purchase facility, is helping to do this, most recently with the assistance of the Clinton Foundation.
	We hope that it will be possible for both parties to reopen negotiations at some stage in the future, given the potential benefits overall. Trade Unions as well as companies play a vital role in efforts to tackle AIDS. Working with employees in large, small and medium sized companies, in the formal and informal sectors—and in the public and private sectors, Trade Unions can support the implementation of effective company work place policies. In turn this will ultimately reduce the impact of AIDS on employees and businesses.

British Overseas Territories

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when he last visited each overseas territory; and what plans he has for such visits in 2007.

Hilary Benn: DFID only provides bilateral assistance to three Overseas Territories, Montserrat, St. Helena and Pitcairn. I have not visited them. My hon. Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Mr. Thomas) to whom I have given lead responsibility in the Department for oversight of our work with the Overseas Territories, visited Montserrat in 2004. There are no current plans for visits to Overseas Territoriesin 2007.

British Overseas Territories

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what plans his Department has to further improve transport links to promote the tourism industry in the British Overseas Territories; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: DFID currently provides development assistance to three Overseas Territories, Montserrat, St. Helena (including Tristan da Cunha) and Pitcairn. Following completion of Gerald's airport in 2005,the next priority for improving transport links to Montserrat will be the improvement of the port at Little Bay. The project is currently at the design stage. It is expected to be jointly funded by DFID and the European Union (EU), and may include an extension to the existing jetty and construction of a breakwater. The cost will depend on the options selected, but could be up to £10 million.
	In March 2005, I announced the development of air access for St. Helena, through construction of an airport on Prosperous Bay Plain, and introduction of scheduled flights. The new airport will both meet our commitment to maintaining access, and contribute to economic regeneration through tourism. The project includes significant funding for tourism marketing. The project budget cannot be divulged in order not to prejudice the current procurement competition for the construction works. We also plan, with joint funding from the EU, to develop Jamestown Wharf. Currently the Wharf is the single point of entry to the island for all cargo and passengers. The proposed project addresses the need to improve cargo operations and to develop safe landing facilities for St. Helenians, business visitors and tourists. Costs will be about£11.5 million.
	In Tristan da Cunha, DFID, with joint EU funding, is currently rehabilitating Calshot harbour. Repairs to Tristan's harbour and breakwater were last carried out over 10 years ago and continuous wave action and storm damage now threaten to cause permanent damage to the island's only point of entry. Total project cost is about £3 million.
	Plans for the construction of a breakwater on Pitcairn, again with joint EU funding, are well advanced. Consultants have been appointed to prepare a detailed design and costing, estimated to be about£6 million. A breakwater would provide more predictable and safer access to Pitcairn Island through Bounty Bay. This in turn will promote tourism on the island by increasing the opportunities for cruise ships, yachts and other ships to disembark passengers.

CDC Group

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what investments have been made by the CDC Group since 2003.

Gareth Thomas: CDC's investments since 2003, totalling £556.2 million, are listed as follows. They are broken down by region/country and by sector.
	
		
			  CDC new investments  since 2003 
			  £ million 
			   2004  2005  2006  Total since 2003 
			  By country 
			 Africa region 19.8 8.7 28.3 56.8 
			 Algeria — 0.5 — 0.5 
			 Burkina Faso — 1.4 — 1.4 
			 Burkina Faso and Senegal 3.5 2.1 — 5.6 
			 Egypt 39.5 2.7 — 42.2 
			 Ghana — 1.3 4.9 6.2 
			 Kenya 1.6 2.3 0.1 4.0 
			 Nigeria 27.9 15.1 3.2 46.2 
			 Rwanda 2.5 (0.3) — 2.2 
			 Senegal — 2.3 — 2.3 
			 South Africa 16.3 34.1 19.5 69.9 
			 Tanzania 27.6 2.5 0.6 30.7 
			 Tunisia — 11.7 — 11.7 
			 Uganda — 1.5 — 1.5 
			 Zambia 1.2 2.3 0.3 3.8 
			  
			 Asia Pacific region 0.5 19.1 3.0 22.6 
			 China 12.5 2.4 4.1 19.0 
			 Indonesia — 0.9 — 0.9 
			 Malaysia 4.0 0.6 4.3 8.9 
			 Philippines — 0.2 (0.2) 0.0 
			 Papua New Guinea — — 0.2 0.2 
			 Singapore — 5.5 — 5.5 
			 Solomon Islands 0.7 — — 0.7 
			  
			 Americas region 0.5 0.4 1.8 2.7 
			 Bolivia 26.1 0.7 — 26.8 
			 British Virgin Islands — 0.3 — 0.3 
			 Costa Rica 1.5 3.8 — 5.3 
			 Cuba 1.0 0.1 — 1.1 
			 Dominican Republic — — 5.1 5.1 
			 Haiti — — 0.4 0.4 
			 Panama — — 43.7 43.7 
			 Peru 0.5 0.3 6.2 7.0 
			 St. Lucia — 0.7 — 0.7 
			  
			 South Asia region 2.4 4.2 14.9 21.5 
			 Bangladesh — 0.7 4.9 5.6 
			 India 10.0 15.9 23.7 49.6 
			 Pakistan 0.6 — 17.0 17.6 
			 Sri Lanka — 2.6 — 2.6 
			  
			 Global—poor(1) — 9.1 14.5 23.6 
			  
			 Total 200.2 155.5 200.5 556.2 
			  
			  By sector 
			 Agribusiness 7.7 10.9 1.6 20.2 
			 Financial services 50.3 20.8 73.0 144.1 
			 Infrastructure 17.1 12.2 7.1 36.4 
			 Minerals, oil and gas 5.9 27.8 19.1 52.8 
			 Manufacturing 2.9 50.5 2.4 55.8 
			 Other 5.5 11.6 17.6 34.7 
			 Power 96.6 11.0 76.8 184.4 
			 Telecoms, media and IT 14.2 10.7 2.9 27.8 
			  
			 Total 200.2 155.5 200.5 556.2 
			 (1) Global poor refers to investments in funds that are spread globally or across more than one region.

Conflict Areas

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps are being taken by his Department to improve the provision of  (a) education and  (b) healthcare in states affected by conflicts.

Gareth Thomas: DFID does not maintain an agreed list of 'states affected by conflict'. We do have a list of 'fragile states' which we are currently reviewing, as countries frequently move in and out of fragility and conflict, and political circumstances in a country can rapidly change. This list will include countries that are generally recognised to be conflict-affected. Detail on DFID's current definition and list of fragile states can be found in DFID's policy paper, "Why We Need to Work More Effectively in Fragile States", page 7 and Annex 1, which is available in the House of Commons Library.
	 (a) Education
	The UK announcement in April to provide£8.5 billion over the next 10 years in support of education will contribute to international efforts to achieve universal primary education by 2015. The Education for All Fast Track Initiative's (FTI) Education Programme and Development Fund will help assist conflict affected states prepare education sector plans for donor support. The FTI is currently piloting support in DRC, Haiti, Liberia, Somalia and Sudan.
	DFID also supports the direct provision of education in a number of countries affected by conflict through United Nations agencies and international non-governmental organisations (INGOS). For example in Somalia DFID has a 3-year partnership with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) to increase children's access to education, with a strong focus on getting girls into school. In Burma our partnership with Save the Children UK supports early childhood education which provides safe schooling for young children in some of the poorest conflict-affected communities.
	 (b) Health
	DFID is already providing much more aid to the health sectors in fragile states, with expenditure more than doubling between 2003-04 and 2005-06. Examples include a joint programme for HIV/AIDS in Burma. This has attracted increased funding and made possible a larger-scale national response. In Afghanistan, a multi-donor trust fund, the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF) is helping to build government systems while at the same time raising additional finance for basic services such as health, education and water and sanitation that are focused on the poor.
	DFID also contributes to Global Health Funds and Partnerships. An example, the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, has committed US $ 1.5 billion in 142 grants in fragile states, accounting for over one-third of total commitments.

Corporate Hospitality

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development on how many occasionshe has accepted corporate hospitality in the last 12 months.

Hilary Benn: I have not accepted corporate hospitality on any occasion during the last 12 months. Paragraph 5.28 of the Ministerial Code sets out the rules on the registration of hospitality.

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Hilary Benn: The Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) signed up to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) in March 2005. Since then important progress has been made in implementing EITI in the DRC. A multi-stakeholder national EITI Committee was established by Presidential Decree in November 2005 charged with ensuring the DRC implementation process complies with EITI criteria. In February 2006, the DRC Government named members of the EITI Committee and allocated a budget for its operations from the Government's finances. In addition, an EITI baseline study for the exploitation of copper, cobalt and diamonds is currently underway.
	However, a lot more work will be needed before EITI is fully implemented in the DRC. Continued political commitment from the newly-elected DRC Government as well as capacity building and improved co-ordination within relevant DRC Government institutions will be crucial. Strong engagement from civil society, private sector and wider international community stakeholders will also be required.
	Support for EITI implementation forms an important plank of DFID's planned support in the minerals sector in DRC. Over coming months, DFID will be working with all EITI stakeholders to develop a package of support aimed at ensuring EITI is successfully implemented in the DRC.

Departmental Finance

Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much was paid by his Department to  (a) the Global Fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria and  (b) the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation in each year since 2000-01; and how these contributions were classified.

Gareth Thomas: DFID paid £259 million to the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria from 2000 to 2006 as follows:
	
		
			  Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria: DFID spend 2000 to 2006 
			   £ million 
			 2000 — 
			 2001 — 
			 2002 50 
			 2003 25 
			 2004 33 
			 2005 51 
			 2006 100 
			 Total 259 
		
	
	DFID paid £44.32 million to the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation from 2000 to 2006 as follows:
	
		
			 Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation: DFID spend 2000 to 2006 
			   £ million 
			 2000 3 
			 2001 7 
			 2002 7.28 
			 2003 0.28 
			 2004 13.99 
			 2005 0 
			 2006 12.77 
			 Total 44.32 
		
	
	DFID's contributions to the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation were classified as bilateral official development assistance. Contributions to the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria were classified as multilateral assistance, except for the costs associated with the UK-hosted 2005 Replenishment Conference, which were reported as bilateral official development assistance.

Departmental Finance

Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development in which recipient countries his Department pools funds with other donors to give poverty reduction budget support.

Hilary Benn: DFID generally provides poverty reduction budget support (PRBS) direct to a partner Government account rather than through any intermediary. In this respect DFID financing is not pooled with those from other donors prior to the release of funds to the respective Government account.
	However, in most countries where we deliver PRBS other donors also provide this form of assistance directly to the Government. We work closely with other donors for example, in many countries a joint Memorandum of Understanding governs the management of the PRBS relationship between Government and donors; performance monitoring frameworks are prepared jointly and jointly assessed and discussed with the Government.

Departmental Finance

Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what criteria are used in classifying bilateral aid earmarked for a specific programme as  (a) sector budget support included under budget heading PRBS and  (b) sector wide programmes included under budget heading Other Financial Aid; and how much was allocated to each category in each year since 2000-01.

Hilary Benn: Aid is classified as poverty reduction budget support (PRBS) if it is merged with other domestic resources and accounted for alongside the rest of the partner Government's expenditure through their reporting and accounting systems and reports of the Auditor General. Sector budget support is aid that is earmarked for expenditure either in a particular sector, sub sector, programme, or set of expenditure lines. The general principle is that this is aid which is spent using national or sub-national financial management, procurement and accountability systems. Before deciding to provide sector budget support a fiduciary risk assessment is undertaken to assess the partner Government Public Financial Management Administration systems for the effective use of and accounting for the funds.
	For financial aid to be classified as a sector wide approach (SWAp), the following criteria would need to be met:
	There is a comprehensive sector policy and strategy in place:
	An annual sector expenditure programme and medium term Sectoral Expenditure Framework:
	Donor coordination is government led:
	Major donors can provide support within the agreed framework.
	As well as at least one of the following:
	A significant number of donors committed to moving towards greater reliance on government financial and accountability systems:
	A common approach by donors to implementation and management.
	Figures for DFID expenditure on sector budget support are published in Statistics on International Development, copies of which are available in the Library. The relevant figures are reproduced in Table 1 alongside estimates of DFID expenditure on sector wide approaches.
	
		
			  Table 1: DFID financial aid allocated to sector budget support and sector wide approaches 
			  £000 
			   Sector budget support  Sector wide approaches 
			 2000-01 24,098 23,992 
			 2001-02 22,718 35,195 
			 2002-03 23,685 40,986 
			 2003-04 44,724 33,974 
			 2004-05 115,752 23,286 
			 2005-06 195,870 53,286

Departmental Finance

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of Statefor International Development how much of the£8.5 billion on aid for education announced in April 2006 has been earmarked to promote education for females.

Hilary Benn: In DFID's 2006 White Paper on International Development, "Making governance work for the poor", we made a commitment to support special initiatives to get more girls into school. We have just published the first Progress Report of DFID's 2005 girls' education strategy 'Girls' education: towards a better future for all' which provides more details. Copies of the report are being placed in the Library.
	The UK's £8.5 billion funding commitment to education in developing countries will mainly be used to support partner Governments with predictable funding against which they can prepare ambitious10 year education sector plans to achieve the education millennium development goals. The plans will focus on investment in schools, including recruiting and training more teachers, getting more pupils, including girls and disadvantaged children, into and completing school and improving the quality of education. So at least half of this funding will benefit girls directly or indirectly.
	The development of education sector plans is being led by the developing countries, with donors including the UK contributing. Individual allocations of the£8.5 billion, including special initiatives for girls, will be decided at country level.

Departmental Publications

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of Statefor International Development how many graphic designers his Department employed for the production and publication of its  (a) white papers and  (b) departmental reports in each year since 2003; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: DFID does not employ graphic designers, but contracts graphic design companies or printing firms with a graphic design capacity to design its publications and reports. This includes White Papers and departmental reports. DFID has used one company on its recent White Paper published in 2006, and one company has produced the departmental report annually since 2003. DFID does not have a record of how many people were employed by these firms as graphic designers.

Engagements

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development which countries he has visited since 2003; and for what purposes.

Hilary Benn: The Government publish on annual basis lists of all travel by Cabinet Ministers costing over £500. Lists covering 2003 to 2005-06 are available in the Libraries of the House. Information for 2006-07 will be published when it is ready.

Globaleq

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what acquisition of assets have been made by Globaleq since its establishment.

Gareth Thomas: Since its establishment in June 2002, Globaleq has acquired power generation and distribution assets consistent with its strategy in Africa, Asia and the Americas. The following table provides details of the acquisitions. Subsequent divestment of assets are noted.
	
		
			  Company  Country  Acquisition date  Gross MW  GQ% at acquisition  Equity MW  Fuel  Notes 
			 Kelvin South Africa December 2002 600 95 600 coal divested March 2006 
			 Songas Tanzania May 2003 110 100 110 natural gas — 
			 Haripur Bangladesh December 2003 360 100 360 natural gas — 
			 Meghnaghat Bangladesh December 2003 450 100 450 natural gas — 
			 Cobee Bolivia April 2004 204 100 204 hydro/natural gas — 
			 Sidi Krir Egypt November 2004 685 61 418 natural gas Initial acquisition 
			 Umeme Uganda March 2005 — — — power distribution — 
			 Sidi Krir Egypt May 2005 685 39 267 natural gas Acquisition of balance in Sidi Krir 
			 NEPC Haripur Bangladesh April 2006 115 50 58 natural gas — 
			 Fortuna Panama April 2006 300 25 75 hydro — 
			 Pedregal Panama April 2006 54 21 11 Fuel Oil — 
			 CEPP Dominican Republic April 2006 66 48 32 Fuel Oil — 
			 Fauji Kabirwala Pakistan July 2006 157 42 66 natural gas — 
			 Nejapa El Salvador December 2006 144 87 125 Fuel Oil — 
			  Note: MW = mega watts

HIV/AIDS

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much he has given to the Staying Alive HIV/AIDS prevention campaign in each year since 1998-99.

Gareth Thomas: DFID has provided two grants to the Staying Alive campaign, to support two conferences on finding the best ways to reach young people with messages about HIV prevention and AIDS awareness. DFID provided £18,292 in 2004 and £29,901.75in 2005.

Iraq

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of the level of unemployment in each region of Iraq.

Hilary Benn: The most recent reliable unemployment data available for Iraq comes from the Iraq Living Conditions Survey carried out in 2004 by the Iraqi Ministry of Planning and Development Cooperation/United Nations Development Programme. There is no other more recent comparable survey. The 2004 survey found that the core unemployment rate in Iraq was just over 10 per cent. (using the International Labour Organisation definition i.e. looking for but unable to find employment). In 2004, Iraq had a working age population of 16.4 million, but only 6.7 million (41 per cent.) were working or actively seeking work. 6 million of these were employed, leaving 700,000 (around 10 per cent.) unemployed. Unemployment was highest in Baghdad at 13.5 per cent., then the South at 10.8 per cent.; then 9.1 per cent. in the North and the lowest in the centre at 8.2 per cent. The survey also notes that workforce participation is higher in rural areas than urban areas.
	Available data shows that Iraq has always had a very low workforce participation rate, in line with other countries in the region. This can be attributed to low participation rates among women (common to other countries in the region) and young men. Young men constitute 15 per cent. of the economically inactive (i.e. above 15-years-old but not seeking employment). The majority of young economically inactive men (68 per cent.) claim they are studying and thus not available to work. 20 per cent. claim that there are no jobs available and have therefore given up looking for work.
	Ongoing violence in Iraq makes job creation difficult, and in particular discourages private investment which could boost employment. DFID is working with the Iraqi Government to ensure that when the security situation improves, the economy is stable and in a position to grow and to generate new jobs.

Kenya

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of the level of corruption in Kenya.

Hilary Benn: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply given by the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs on11 December 2006,  Official Report, column 773W.

Open-source Software

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what initiatives  (a) promoting and  (b) distributing open-source software in developing countries his Department is engaged in.

Hilary Benn: DFID helped to promote open-source software by assisting with the development of:
	 (a) a toolkit to help governments navigate open-source software policy in Africa. This is available at www.catia.ws
	 (b) a free, open-source software which will allow any website to run over the slowest connection speeds. It allows fast, cheap access to information for those with limited connectivity to the internet. Further information is available at www.loband.org
	Issue 31 of DFID's Developments magazinefocused on the role that wireless technology and open source software can play in International Development. Back issues are available on request at publicity@dfid.gov.uk

Procurement Projects

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the 20 largest procurement projects initiated by his Department since May 1997 were; what the  (a) original budget,  (b) cost to date and  (c) consultancy fees were; and what the final cost was of each project which has been completed.

Hilary Benn: The 20 largest projects initiated by DFID since 1997 and delivered using external expertise are given in the following table. The majority of these form part of our development programme and include the provision of services to recipient governments. For this type of project our contracts may increase if DFID extends its programme of support or if new recipient requirements emerge during implementation.
	
		
			  Project title  Country  Original budget (£)  Cost (payments made to date) (£)  Fees element of payments to date( 1)  (£)  Final cost (£) 
			 Support to Promoting Sexual Health, Reproductive Health and HIV/AIDS Reduction Nigeria 52,800,000 14,828,756 3,057,778 (2)— 
			 Chars Livelihoods Programme: Concept and Management Bangladesh 46,707,735 8,647,812 2,712,683 (2)— 
			 Strengthening the Response to HIV/AIDS (Implementation Phase) Nigeria 21,272,017 2,852,269 1,511,472 (2)— 
			 Support to the States and Local Government Project Nigeria 20,385,712 16,723,674 4,789,638 (2)— 
			 Reviving Routine Immunisation in Northern Nigeria(3) Nigeria 19,000,000 0 0 (2)— 
			 Procurement Service Provider for the HIV/AIDS and Health Multisectoral Support Framework South Africa, Republic of 18,190,000 1,578,671 360,000 (2)— 
			 Renewable Natural Resources Knowledge Strategy: Crop Project Global, non-specific 16,110,000 16,779,685 2,010,460 16,779,685 
			 Crop Protection Research Programme Management Contract Global, non-specific 15,516,427 15,576,427 1,665,531 15,576,427 
			 Financial Management Reforms Programme Bangladesh 15,380,381 15,178,122 3,941,483 (2)— 
			 Promoting Opportunities for Poor People through a Commodity and Service Markets Programme Nigeria 15,062,411 3,205,231 2,316,541 (2)— 
			 Support to the Consolidation of Municipal Transformation Programme South Africa, Republic of 13,100,000 3,209,767 721,749 (2)— 
			 Contraceptive Social Marketing Project—Phase 2 Nigeria 12,986,010 14,950,238 2,295,221 14,950,238 
			 Procurement Service Provider for Integrated Provincial Support Programme 2 South Africa, Republic of 12,979,117 13,351,618 768,348 13,351,618 
			 Strengthening Counter Narcotics Institutions of Afghanistan Afghanistan 12,551,407 4,288,709 2,254,585 (2)— 
			 Implementation of the HIV/AIDS Prevention and Care Project, Phase III Kenya 12,409,503 15,211,322 3,366,425 (2)— 
			 Eastern Cape Provincial, District and School Development Programme South Africa, Republic of 12,031,278 13,227,532 1,259,149 (2)— 
			 Humanitarian Services To DFID and the Post Conflict Reconstruction Unit United Kingdom 11,729,000 1,172,900 1,172,900 (2)— 
			 Orissa Power Sector Reform India 11,540,702 16,186,847 14,259,048 16,186,847 
			 Support to Universal Basic Education Nigeria 10,997,147 6,671,696 3,918,076 (2)— 
			 NGO Project Management—Reproductive Health Project(4) Malawi 10,979,000 11,880,852 0 11,880,852 
			 (1) Fees are one element of contract cost. The balance is a range of reimbursed expenses and management costs (2) Not yet completed (3) No invoices received yet (4) Costs were all related to implementation of the project and were all designated as operational costs

Public Opinion Research

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department spent on commissioning public opinion research in each of the last five years.

Gareth Thomas: DFID carries out two annual surveys into public attitudes to development. One is run through Ipsos MORI into school children's attitudes to development and another is run through the Office for National Statistics and looks at general public attitudes to development. DFID also occasionally commissions smaller pieces of research to look into attitudes to particular aspects of development. From 2004-07 DFID funded Comic Relief, through the Development Awareness Fund to carry out research into public perceptions, especially the impact of the Make Poverty History Campaign.
	Records previous to 2003 are not readily available and to obtain accurate figures would incur disproportionate cost. The following table sets out figures for 2003-06:
	
		
			  £ 
			   2003-04  2004-05  2005-06 
			 MORI 12,431.50 12,043.75 14,775.62 
			 ONS 32,990.00 36,120.00 41,766.00 
			 Comic Relief—public perceptions of poverty — 95,723.00 99,666.00 
			 Total 48,455.50 143,886.75 156,207.62

Special Advisers

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  what guidance he has issued to his special advisers concerning alterations to their duties during the campaign for the deputy leadership of the Labour Party;
	(2)  what plans he has to alter the  (a) salaries of,  (b) number of support staff available to and  (c) office space provided to his special advisers in the next12 months.

Hilary Benn: Special advisers act in accordance with the requirements of the code of conduct for special advisers. This makes clear that special advisers may assist with a leadership or deputy leadership campaign, but it must be in their own time. In addition, the Cabinet Secretary has issued guidance to Departments on conduct in the run-up to such elections. A copy has been placed in the Library for the reference of Members.
	I have no plans to alter the  (a) salaries of,  (b) number of support staff available to and  (c) office space provided to my special advisers in the next12 months.

St. Helena

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on the progress of the building of the new airport inSt. Helena.

Gareth Thomas: An invitation to tender (ITT) issued on 11 July 2006. In light of reactions from the market, relating principally to the cost of tendering and the proposed allocation of risk, this notice was withdrawn. The notice for a new competition was published in the  Official Journal of the EU on 28 October 2006.
	While the scope of work remains largely unchanged, the new invitation is based on a revised allocation of risk under which the Government of St. Helena would assume greater responsibility for certain project risks. The revised invitation also contains reference designs for the major project elements to help tenderers minimise the cost and time of tendering. We expect to issue the revised invitation to tender towards the end of the second quarter of 2007.
	Inevitably, this means a delay in the likely completion date for the airport. We now estimate that air access will be introduced by 2011-12.

Water and Sanitation

Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of Statefor International Development what support his Department has given to public sector water providers in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: DFID's estimated total expenditure on water and sanitation was £221 million in 2003-04, an increase from £147 million in 2002-03. In 2003-04 the proportion of bilateral expenditure (£131 million) spent predominantly through governments, not for profit or humanitarian agencies was estimated at 95 per cent., based on a review of project documentation.
	Updated figures for 2004-05 and 2005-06 will be published later in January 2007. Draft figures suggest the general increase in water and sanitation expenditure has been broadly maintained, with a decline in expenditure in Iraq offset by an increase in spend in Africa.
	We are currently conducting an exercise to estimate the breakdown of bilateral expenditure in 2004-05 and 2005-06 by public and private beneficiaries, results of which will also be published in the updated report.

World Bank/IMF

Andrew Pelling: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps have been taken by the UK to strengthen co-operation between the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

Hilary Benn: Close cooperation between the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank improves the effectiveness of their support for poverty reduction and stability. We welcome the External Review Committee on Fund-Bank collaboration established by Rodrigo De Rato and Paul Wolfowitz in March 2006.
	This has provided the opportunity to feed in UK views on how they can strengthen cooperation. Our contributions have been based around three themes. The first is to stress that there are important roles and responsibilities for both the Fund and Bank in both middle and low income countries. The second is to highlight areas where the Fund and Bank can make a more effective contribution through joint work. We have identified debt sustainability, financial sector strength, public expenditure management, and economic policy and growth, as the most critical issues. Both institutions also have an important contribution to make in supporting country-led poverty reduction strategies. The third theme is to highlight the need for a strong co-operative culture in both institutions so that there is consistent and effective collaboration in all developing countries. This requires a strong and sustained commitment from the management of the Fund and Bank. The UK continues to engage with the Committee and our international partners to exchange views and provide feedback on the extent to which the Fund and Bank are working together effectively in country. Examples of good and bad practice help to identify how they can achieve more effective collaboration.

11 Downing Street

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the names are of the guests who have stayed overnight at Number 11 Downing Street in the last12 months.

John Healey: The Treasury is not responsible for the flat in No. 11 Downing Street.

Customs: Searches

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many searches were made by customs officers in each of the last five years; how many seizures of money were made; and how much money was seized.

Dawn Primarolo: The number of searches of persons undertaken by HMRC is published in the Annual Reports for HM Customs and Excise and HM Revenue and Customs. HM Revenue and Customs do not centrally record the number of any other searches they undertake.
	The number and quantity of cash seized by HM Revenue and Customs is shown in the table.
	
		
			   Total number of cash seizures made where the cash has not been returned  Total value of cash seizures made where the cash has not been returned (£ million)  Total number of cash seizures where the cash has been returned  Total value of cash seized and returned (£ million) 
			 2005-06 559 20.00 48 13.1 
			 2004-05 875 22.9 113 2.1 
			 2003-04 678 33.5 189 5.5 
			 2002-03 465 34.6 55 3.1 
			 2001-02 310 15.1 9 0.26

Departmental Expenditure

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he keeps a record of those he has entertained at No. 11 Downing street when the costs are met from public funds.

John Healey: Information on visitors to No.11 isnot held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate costs. All expenditure on official hospitality is made in accordance with published departmental guidance on financial procedures and propriety, based on the principles set out in "Government Accounting".

Departmental Expenditure

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much was spent on  (a) expenses,  (b) travel,  (c) hotels and  (d) meals by staff in his Department during business visits in (i) 2004-05, (ii) 2005-06 and (iii) 1996-97; and how many staff have made claims for such items.

John Healey: For the Treasury's costs in 2004-05and 2005-06 on subsistence, which includes accommodation and meals on business visits, I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Grant Shapps) on16 October 2006,  Official Report, column 1060W. For the Treasury's costs in 2004-05 and 2005-06 on travel, I refer to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Rayleigh (Mr. Francois) on 29 November 2006,  Official Report, column 719W. Information on the number of staff making claims or for the costs in 1996-97 could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Disabled Staff

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much has been spent from his Department's central administration budget on  (a) reasonable adjustments for disabled staff and  (b) the recruitment and retention of disabled staff in each of the last four years.

John Healey: holding answer 18 December 2006
	The Treasury has had a central reasonable adjustments budget since mid 2004.
	The following has been spent on reasonable adjustments:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2004/05 21,000.00 
			 2005/06 36,538.00 
		
	
	The central reasonable adjustments budget has been an important initiative in the retention of disabled staff. Before 2004 the cost of reasonable adjustments were met by the team budget in which the employee worked. The costs to individual teams are not available separately.
	The costs of the recruitment of disabled staff and reasonable adjustments to, and during, the recruitment process are included in the overall the recruitment budget. All recruitment is in line with the Civil Service Recruitment Code and candidates who declare a disability and meet the minimum criteria of the post are guaranteed an interview. Reasonable adjustment will be made for candidates with disabilities who request adjustments.

Electronic Filing

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many large companies with several small pay-as-you-earn reference numbers have been successful in claiming the incentive payments for electronic filing for small employers on more than one occasion within the year; what steps have been taken to ensure that such claims are not made successfully; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Any employer who applies to split an existing payroll for PAYE purposes into a series of smaller payrolls must make an election under Regulation 98, SI 2003 No. 2682. Each election is considered on its own merits. Where there is evidence that the motivation for such an election is to qualify for incentive payments, which are only available to small employers, the application will be refused.
	The Government had anticipated this might be an issue and regulations are in place to address it (Regulation 99, SI 2003 No. 2682).
	HMRC do not keep statistics on the number of rejected elections. But there is no evidence from compliance activity undertaken that there has been abuse of the system in this way.

Electronic Filing

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his original estimate was of the cost in each year of the incentive payments for electronic filing for small employers in each financial year that the scheme was set to run; for how many years those payments are planned to continue; how eligibility for the payments is determined; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The original estimate of the cost of online filing incentives was £420 million, broken down as follows:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2005-06 (1)40 
			 2006-07 (2)110 
			 2007-08 (3)110 
			 2008-09 to 2009-10 (4)160 
			 (1) In respect of 2004-05 returns. (2) In respect of 2005-06 returns. (3) In respect of 2006-07 returns. (4) In respect of 2007-08 and 2008-09 returns. 
		
	
	Since then the estimates have been regularly revised to reflect the success of converting small employers to filing their PAYE employer annual returns online. These estimates are approved by Ministers and details are provided to the Treasury Select Committee.
	To qualify for the online filing incentive the employer must:
	have fewer than 50 employees (the number is determined by a count carried out every year by HMRC of employees within each PAYE scheme);
	successfully send their employer annual return online;
	send a return that is required under the PAYE regulations—this means a completed end of year pay, tax and national insurance summary (form P35) and a completed form P14 for at least one employee; and
	only be established, employ employees or make payments of PAYE income wholly or mainly for permissible purposes (Regulation 6(5) SI 2005 No. 826.)

Electronic Filing

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much was paid in incentive payments for electronic filing for small employers in each year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: £225.2 million was paid to small employers in 2005-06.
	These payments related to 2004-05 PAYE Employer Annual Returns submitted to HMRC.

Excise Duties: Fuels

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what effect on the income generated to the Exchequer has resulted from the increases in excise duty for hydrocarbon oils announced in measure 32 of his 1998 Budget Report since 1998.

John Healey: None. This measure has not been implemented.

Gender Equality

John Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to ensure that private organisations contracted to work  (a) in his Department and  (b) for non-departmental public bodies and executive agencies for which his Department is responsible are aware of their duties under gender equality legislation when exercising public functions on behalf of public bodies.

John Healey: The Treasury and its non-departmental public bodies and executive agencies incorporate terms and conditions into some or all of their contracts to ensure they can assess a private organisations equal opportunity policies and comply with gender legislation.
	Details of such practice varies across the Treasury Group and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	From 6 April 2007, private sector organisations, when carrying out functions of a public nature on behalf of public authorities, will be required to comply with the general gender equality duty which is to have due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination and harassment and promote equality of opportunity between women and men. Documentation will refer to the Equal Opportunities Commission's (EOC) Code of Practice of the Gender Equality Duty and any further EOC guidance when available.

Government Assets

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will break down by Government department the value of assets sold by central government in  (a) 2004-05,  (b) 2005-06 and  (c) 2006-07.

Stephen Timms: The table provides details of the value of assets sold by central Government departments in 2004-05 and 2005-06. Data for 2006-07 are not available.
	
		
			  Fixed asset disposals by departmental group, 2004-05 and 2005-06( 1) , sale value basis 
			  £ million 
			  Departmental group  2004-05 outturn  2005-06 outturn 
			 CO 1 0 
			 DCA 23 12 
			 DCLG 159 179 
			 DCMS 1 2 
			 DEFRA 8 17 
			 DfES 0 0 
			 DfID 0 0 
			 DfT 39 19 
			 DH 233 532 
			 DTI 24 29 
			 DWP 17 13 
			 FCO 8 20 
			 HMRC 60 -17 
			 HMT 45 12 
			 HO 3 2 
			 LD 0 6 
			 MOD(2) 355 725 
			 NAW 46 42 
			 NIE 111 73 
			 NIO 1 4 
			 SE 3 3 
			 Total central Government 1,138 1,673 
			 Total local authorities(3) 5,169 4,207 
			 Total fixed asset disposal receipts 6,308 5,879 
			 (1) Taken from COINS database, consistent with PBR 2006. 2006-07 data not available. (2) Excluding SUME which are classified as current in the National Accounts but capital in budgets. (3) Includes Housing Revenue Account that is no longer statistically classified to the LA sub sector.  Note: Difference from PESA 06 due to: exclusion of police, inclusion of English Partnerships.

Government Assets

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which 10 individuals, companies or organisations purchased the highest proportion of central Government assets sold in 2005-06 reported in Table B21 of his 2006 Pre-Budget Report; and what total value of assets each purchased.

Stephen Timms: HM Treasury does not hold information on the purchasers of individual assets from Departments.

Government Assets

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his target for £30 billion of surplus asset sales by 2010-11 includes the sale of public sector assets in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Stephen Timms: The £30 billion target for asset disposals includes the sale of public sector fixed assets in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland including those owned by the devolved administrations. However,in Scotland and Wales it is for the devolved administrations to determine the amount of theirasset sales.

Grandparent Carers

Grant Shapps: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he has taken to support grandparents who care for their grandchildren.

Dawn Primarolo: Where grandparents have the primary responsibility for bringing up their grandchildren, they are entitled to financial support, namely child benefit and child tax credit, on the same terms as a parent would be, with no affect to pension credit assessments. Child benefit and child tax credit guarantee support for the first child of over £3,000 a year for grandparents with a low income and nearly £1,500 for those with an income of up to £50,000a year.

Health Statistics

Shona McIsaac: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the incidence rate was for  (a) chronic lung disease,  (b) coronary heart disease and  (c) cancer for (i) men and (ii) women in Cleethorpes constituency since 1997.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 8 January 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking what the incidence rate was for (a) chronic lung disease, (b) coronary heart disease and (c) cancer for (i) men and (ii) women in Cleethorpes constituency since 1997. (110034)
	The table below provides the age-standardised incidence rate for all cancers registered in Cleethorpes parliamentary constituency for the years 2001 to 2004 (the latest available).
	Incidence rates for parliamentary constituencies which do not share boundaries exactly with a local authority can be calculated only from 2001 onwards. Figures on the incidence of chronic lung disease and coronary heart disease are not readily available.
	The ward population estimates on which these rates are based are experimental statistics—that is, statistics which are in a testing or consultation phase and are not fully developed—and the figures should therefore be treated with caution.
	
		
			  Table: Age-standardised incidence rates( 1)  of all cancers( 2)  registered in the Cleethorpes parliamentary constituency, 2001-04( 3,4) 
			   Male  Female 
			 2001 405 326 
			 2002 409 344 
			 2003 410 298 
			 2004 348 299 
			 (1 )Age-standardised cancer registration rates per 100,000 population, standardised to the European Standard Population. Age-standardised rates are used to allow comparison between populations which may contain different proportions of people of different ages. (2) International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes C00-C97 excluding code C44: non-melanoma skin cancer. (3) Using local authority ward boundaries as of 2005 for cancer registrations for all years shown. (4) The ward population estimates used to calculate the ward incidence rates are experimental statistics, and are consistent with the published local authority mid-year estimates for the relevant year.

HM Revenue and Customs

Simon Burns: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will reconsider the decision to close down the HM Revenue and Customs compliance office in Chelmsford; why the decision was taken; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: holding answer 19 December 2006
	I refer the hon. Member to my reply of27 November 2006,  Official Report, columns 451-52W to the hon. Member for Westmorland & Lonsdale(Tim Farron).

HM Revenue and Customs

Paul Murphy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received on the closure of HM Revenue and Customs offices in South Wales.

Dawn Primarolo: As I made clear in a recent Westminster Hall debate (HM Revenue & Customs (Wales), 29 November 2006,  Official Report, columns 12-134WH) no decision has been made to close any specific offices in Wales or elsewhere in the United Kingdom.

HM Revenue and Customs

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor ofthe Exchequer where queries regarding National Compliance and Risk Assessment accounts within HM Revenue and Customs for Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales will be dealt with following the review of HMRC offices.

Dawn Primarolo: HMRC is currently considering the optimum structure and locations of its offices, led by taxpayer and business needs. Final decisions will be subject to consultation.

Household Income Levels: Scotland

Danny Alexander: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average household income is in  (a) the Highland Council area,  (b) Glasgow,  (c) Scotland and  (d) the UK.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Colin Mowl, dated 8 January 2007:
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question on the levels of average household income in Highlands Council area, Glasgow, Scotland and the United Kingdom. I am replying in her absence. (113404)
	ONS publishes estimates of Gross Disposable Household Income (GDHI) per head on a regional basis. The latest figures published are for 2004. Regional GDHI data are produced using the official statistical geographies known as NUTS (Nomenclature of Units for Territorial Statistics). Data are not available for the Highlands Council area. Data are provided for the Highlands and Islands NUTS 2 area, along with its six constituent NUTS 3 areas.
	
		
			  NUTS level( 2)  Region name  GDHl( 1)  per head (2004) (£) 
			 NUTS2 Highlands and Islands 11,221 
			 NUTS3 Caithness & Sutherland and Ross & Cromarty 11,806 
			 NUTS3 Inverness & Nairn and Moray, Badenoch & Strathspey 11,320 
			 NUTS3 Lochaber, Skye & Lochalsh and Argyll and the Islands 10,546 
			 NUTS3 Eilean Siar 11,244 
			 NUTS3 Orkney Islands 11,003 
			 NUTS3 Shetland Islands 11,606 
			
			 NUTS3 Glasgow City 11,500 
			
			 NUTS1 Scotland 12,116 
			  United Kingdom 12,840 
			 (1) Gross disposable household income is defined as the amount of money that households have available for spending or saving after deductions and expenditure associated with income. Examples of deductions and expenditures associated with income would be taxes and social contributions and provision for future pension income. (2) NUTS areas in Scotland are as follows: NUTS1—Country NUTS2—Groups of whole/part unitary authorities and/or local enterprise company areas (4 areas) NUTS3—Groups of whole/part unitary authorities and/or local enterprise company areas (23 areas).

Iraq and Afghanistan

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the reason is for the change in the amount he allocated to fund operations in Iraq and Afghanistan between the 2006 Budget and the 2006 Pre-Budget Report.

Stephen Timms: The costs of military operations are met from the reserves (including both the capital and resource reserves). They are subject to fluctuation as a result of operational developments and other factors. Budget 2006 announced £800 million of provision in the special reserve to help meet the resource costs of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and other international commitments.
	The MOD has drawn down provision in their Winter Supplementary Estimate for the current additional estimated costs.

Missing Trader Intra-Community VAT Fraud

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the value is of assets confiscated as a result of investigations into Missing Trader Intra Community (MTIC) VAT fraud in each year since 2000-01.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Twickenham on 7 November 2006,  Official Report, column 1050W.

National Insurance Contributions

Norman Lamb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people were given incorrect information on the level of their National Insurance contributions by HM Revenue and Customs in 2006; how many people HM Revenue and Customs has informed of such an error; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: HM Revenue and Customs have sent 3.2 million letters to customers advising them of a potential shortfall in their national insurance paid during 2004-05 and will send up to 1.5 million more over the next few weeks. Some may contain incorrect information due to the late processing of employers 2004-05 returns.
	HM Revenue and Customs have contacted many employers who sent in their returns using our Electronic Data Interchange or Magnetic Media service to tell them about the difficulties with their returns, but it has not been possible to identify or contact all employers affected. They have also explained the position in detail to the key representative bodies.

National Insurance Fund

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what revenue was generated from the surplus of the National Insurance Fund in each ofthe last three years.

Dawn Primarolo: The information requested is in the National Insurance Fund Accounts which are published by the Stationery Office and are in the House of Commons Library.

National Insurance Fund

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what purposes the surplus of the National Insurance Fund may be used.

Dawn Primarolo: When the National Insurance Fund is in surplus it is invested in gilts.

National Insurance Fund

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer by how much the National Insurance Fund is in surplus.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Gentlemen to paragraph 4 of the Report of the Government Actuary on the drafts of the Social Security Benefits Up- rating Order 2006 and the Social Security (Contributions) (Re-rating and National Insurance Funds Payments) Order 2006.

National Insurance Fund

Mike Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effect on income tax levels of a halt to Government borrowing from the national insurance fund.

Dawn Primarolo: The Government have no plans to change the investment strategy of the National Insurance Fund.

National Insurance Fund

Mike Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what the revenue raised from gilts purchased using the surplus in the national insurance fund is spent; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Details of the income from investments of the National Insurance Fund can be found in the annual accounts of the National Insurance Fund published by the Stationery Office. A copy of the most recent account, "National Insurance Fund Account 2004-05", is available in the House of Commons Library.

NHS Trusts: VAT

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will make a statement on the VAT treatment of the supply of academic staff by universities to NHS trusts.

Dawn Primarolo: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) are currently discussing the impact of a VAT and Duties Tribunal decision on the supply of clinical academics by universities to NHS Trusts with the Department of Health, university representative bodies, and other interested parties. HMRC will issue full guidance on the VAT position in due course.

NHS Trusts: VAT

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what consultation took place with  (a) NHS trusts and  (b) their representatives before HM Revenue and Customs published guidelines in April 2006 directing that NHS trusts should not be recovering VAT incurred in providing doctors and locums under Professional Services Heading 52.

Dawn Primarolo: The present Treasury direction—issued under section 41 (3) of the VAT Act 1994—authorises Government Departments and the NHS to recover VAT incurred on nursing services (heading 41), which includes the hire of nurses from outside the NHS. Neither that heading, nor heading 52, extends to the hiring in of other medical staff. Guidance from HM Revenue and Customs in April 2006 simply clarified the correct VAT position. As such, no consultation was required or took place on this matter.
	Section 41 (3) does not refund all the VAT that NHS trusts incur on the items they purchase. The overarching principle is that—in common with the public sector in general—irrecoverable VAT incurred by NHS trusts is included in the overall funding of the NHS.

Pensions

Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library the advice on possible changes to the qualifying conditions for receipt of a full basic state pension that was issued to individuals applying to pay Class 3 national insurance contributions  (a) between 30 November 2005 and25 May 2006 and  (b) since 26 May 2006.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws) on 27 November 2006,  Official Report, column 353W.

Pensions

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list each of the documents published as part of the consultation on the pensions tax simplification legislation included within the Finance Act 2004.

Edward Balls: The Government's proposals were set out in two main consultation documents "Simplifying the taxation of pensions: increasing choice and flexibility for all" (December 2002) and "Simplifying the taxation of pensions: the Government's proposals" (December 2003). Summaries of the responses to the two consultations were published on 14 July 2003 and25 November 2004 on the HMRC website. The proposals were also extensively discussed at a series of public consultation meetings and individual seminars and meetings with the pensions industry.
	On 9 August 2004 draft Regulations, provided for under powers contained in the Finance Act 2004,were published for consultation and a document summarising the consultation responses was published on 8 March 2005. Most of the remaining regulations were published in draft but were not consulted on.

Pensions

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of alternatively secured pensions sold since 1 April.

Edward Balls: Figures are not available, however the numbers of individuals who have entered into Alternatively Secured Pensions (ASP) to date is likely to be small, as the ASP facility only became available on 6 April 2006 and generally only members who have reached age 75 since that date may use ASP.
	In addition, pension schemes that are unable to trace a member when they reach age 75 hold their pension scheme assets as an ASP fund. Only a relatively small number of individuals are likely to be in this position.

Pensions

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what amendments have been made to the pension tax regime since the Finance Act 2004.

Edward Balls: The new simplified tax regime for pension saving, which began on 6 April 2006, was originally enacted in Finance Act 2004.
	Changes to the new regime were enacted under sections 101-102 and Schedule 10 of Finance Act 2005. Many of these changes provided additional flexibilities for schemes and individuals and clarified aspects of the new rules to smooth the transition from the previous to the new simplified regime. There were other changes, for example to provide for the Pension Protection Fund to receive the same types of tax reliefs as registered pension schemes.
	Changes were also made under sections 158-161 and Schedules 21-23 of Finance Act 2006, which provided additional flexibilities for pension schemes, providers and members and also dealt with other matters, for example imposing certain tax charges on some types of registered pension scheme which hold residential property or other taxable assets as investments.

Pensions

Adam Holloway: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of people who will be entitled to an alternatively secured pension.

Edward Balls: The option to enter into an alternatively secured pension (ASP) is available to a member of a registered pension scheme who has reached age 75 since 6 April 2006, without securing a pension.

Planned Asset Sales

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of planned asset sales in each year from 2008-09.

Stephen Timms: In the 2006 pre-Budget report the Government confirmed that disposals in 2004-05 and 2005-06 totalled £12.2 billion and that it is on track to meet the £30 billion asset disposal target by 2010-11. A separate target has not been set for each year, but estimates and projections for the period to 2007-08 are set out in Table B21 of the 2006 pre-Budget report.

Police Interpreters

David Gauke: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what account is taken of changes in expenditure relating to police interpreters in assessing spending requirements for the Home Office.

Stephen Timms: The Home Office's spending requirements are assessed as part of the spending review process. Budget 2006 announced an early spending settlement for the Home Office which maintains the Home Office's 2007-08 departmental expenditure limit in real terms over the years 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11. This settlement takes into account the department's and the police service's pressures, priorities and potential savings.

Social Security Benefits: Terrorism

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 11 December 2006,  Official Report, column 846W, on social security benefits: terrorism, who the two people are who have had benefits payments licensed; what the  (a) type and  (b) weekly amount is of each benefit they claim; and what (i) type and (ii) amount of each benefit was claimed by those people issued with each of the 37 licences issued.

Edward Balls: For privacy reasons, we are unable to release the names of individuals who are receiving state benefits, nor the type and amount of benefits. The37 licences referred to in my written answer of11 December 2006,  Official Report, column 846W, were all non-benefits licences. As stated in that answer, 35 of these licences were for legal expenses and the other two were for basic expenses.

Statutory Instruments

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the statutory instruments  (a) enacted and  (b) published in draft under powers to make regulations in those parts of the Finance Act 2004 and Finance Act 2006 that relate to the tax regime for pensions.

Edward Balls: A list of the statutory instruments that were enacted under powers included in the legislation on the new pensions regime in Finance Acts 2004 and 2006 and a list has been placed in the Library of the House. All were published on the HMRC website in draft before enactment except for SI No. 1962The Taxation of Pension Schemes (Transitional Provisions)(Amendment) Order 2006.

Take-up Rates

Danny Alexander: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the take-up rate is for  (a) child benefit,  (b) child tax credit and  (c) working tax credit in (i) the Highland Council area, (ii) Glasgow, (iii) Scotland and (iv) the UK.

Dawn Primarolo: For information on take-up rate of child benefit in the UK I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the right hon. Member for North Tyneside (Mr. Byers) on 7 March 2006,  Official Report, column 1296W.
	This information is not available in the geographical breakdowns requested.
	Information on the number of working families with children eligible for, but not receiving tax credits broken down by country and Government Office Region is available in table 9 of the 2003-04 tax credit take-up rates publication at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-take-up.htm
	A similar breakdown for those without children is not available.
	Information is not available at council or city level.

Tax Credits

Graham Allen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the expected response time is for customer calls to the Derby Debt Management Team of the Tax Credit Office on the telephone number 01332 724 403; what mechanisms are in place to prevent penalties arising due to customers not being able to make contact within set deadlines due to a lack of telephone line capacity; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: HMRC aims to answer calls promptly and additional resources were diverted to deal with the expected peak in calls at Derby recently. However in some of these cases, where it had not proved possible to answer calls, the department has dealt with cases sympathetically and any costs charged in these circumstances have been written off.

Tax Credits

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 18 July 2006,  Official Report, column 360W, on tax credits, how many tax credit overpayments were successfully disputed in each month since April 2006.

Dawn Primarolo: holding answer 18 December 2006
	For the number of tax credits overpayments written off on the grounds of official error from May 2006 to October 2006 inclusive, I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave the hon. Member for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey (Danny Alexander) on 10 October 2006,  Official Report, columns 730-31W and the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws) on 31 October 2006,  Official Report, column 318-19W.
	For October 2006 and November 2006, the number of tax credits overpayments successfully disputed, that is where the overpayment was written off in full or in part by the tax credit office because of official error, was around:
	
		
			  2006  Number written off (fully or partially) (around) 
			 October 1,000 
			 November 1,000

Tax Credits

Anne Main: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many compensatory payments were made in respect of tax credits in each of the last five years; and what the total cost was of these payments.

Dawn Primarolo: For the number and value of compensation payments made in 2003-04, the year that child and working tax credits were introduced, I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave the hon. Member for Northavon (Steve Webb) and to the hon. Member for the former Hamilton South constituency (Mr. Tynan) on 20 July 2004,  Official Report, column 191W.
	For the number and value of compensation payments made in 2004-05,1 refer to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws) on 4 July 2005,  Official Report, columns 95-96W.
	For the number of compensation payments made in 2005-06, I refer to the answers I gave hon. Member for Yeovil on 15 November 2005,  Official Report, column l212W and 18 July 2006,  Official Report, columns 360-61W. For the value of compensation payments made in 2005-06,1 refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for North West Cambridgeshire (Mr. Vara) on 30 November 2006,  Official Report, columns 843-44W.

Tax Credits

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many prisoners are in receipt of tax credits; and how much was paid in tax credits to prisoners in each year from 2003-04 to 2006-07 to date.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws) on 30 November 2006,  Official Report, column 844W.

Tax Office Closure Programme

Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will consider redundancy terms equivalent to those offered by the Department for Work and Pensions for workers affected by the tax office closure programme.

Dawn Primarolo: HMRC has an Approved Early Retirement Scheme and intends to continue with this into 2007-08. This is entirely voluntary and so far 3,200 staff have accepted these terms.
	HMRC has recently entered into a no redundancy agreement until September 2007 with the recognised trades unions and has no plans to offer schemes similar to those offered in the Department for Work and Pensions.

Treasury Consent

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on the cost threshold beyond which Treasury consent must be given for projects to be implemented; and what that cost threshold is.

John Healey: The threshold for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport above which the approval of HM Treasury must be sought for projects is £6 million, except in the case of the Olympic Delivery Authority, where it is £20 million. The ODA's financial memorandum was agreed by HM Treasury and DCMS.

Unemployment: Wellingborough

Peter Bone: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  pursuant to the statement of 7 December 2006,  Official Report, column 432, what youth unemployment was in Wellingborough constituency in 1997; what youth unemployment is now in Wellingborough constituency; and on what basis the figures were calculated;
	(2)  pursuant to the statement of 7 December 2006,  Official Report, column 432, what adult unemployment in Wellingborough constituency was  (a) in 1997 and  (b) December 2006; and on what basis these figures were calculated.

John Healey: holding answer 14 December 2006
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 8 January 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your parliamentary questions about unemployment. (109240,109243).
	The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles statistics of unemployment for parliamentary constituencies from the annual local area Labour Force Survey (LFS) and the Annual Population Survey (APS) following International Labour Organisation definitions.
	Table 1, attached, shows the number of unemployed people, aged 16 to 24 and aged 25 and over, resident in the Wellingborough constituency for the 12 months ending in February 1997 from the annual local area LFS and for the 12 months ending in June 2006 from the APS. Table 2 shows corresponding unemployment rates which are defined as the number of unemployed expressed as a percentage of the economically active population in the relevant age group.
	As these estimates are for a subset of the population in a small geographical area, they are based on very small sample sizes, and are therefore subject to large margins of uncertainty. In this case, the sample sizes are not sufficient to give an accurate estimate of even the direction of the change over the period.
	ONS also compiles statistics for local areas of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA). Table 3, attached, shows the annual average number of people aged 18 to 24 and aged 25 and over, resident in the Wellingborough constituency, claiming JSA for the 12 months ending in November 1997 and November 2006. Sub-regional claimant count data is not seasonally adjusted and thus comparisons between different months may cause distortions. Annual averages are shown to remove seasonally and years ending November are shown to include the latest month's data in the comparison.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of unemployed persons resident in the Wellingborough constituency. 
			  Thousand 
			Aged 
			 12 months ending Total 16 to 24 25 and over 
			 February 1997 2 1 1 
			 March 2006 3 2 (1)— 
			 
			 (1) The number of respondents in this category is too small to provide estimates.  Note: 1. Estimates are subject to sampling variability. 2. Changes in the estimates over time should be treated with particular caution  Source: Annual local area Labour Force Survey; Annual Population Survey 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Unemployment rates( 1)  for persons resident in the Wellingborough constituency. 
			  Percentage 
			Aged 
			 12 months ending Total 16 to 24 25 and over 
			 February 1997 4.0 8.8 3.1 
			 March 2006 4.7 18.0 (2)— 
			 (1). Unemployed as a percentage of the economically active population (2). The number of respondents in this category is too small to provide estimates  Note: 1. Estimates are subject to sampling variability. 2. Changes in the estimates over time should be treated with particular caution.  Source: Annual local area Labour Force Survey; Annual Population Survey 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Average number of claimants of Jobseeker's Allowance resident in the Wellingborough constituency 
			  Not seasonally adjusted 
			Aged( 1) 
			 12 months ending Total 16 to 17 18 to 24 25 and over 
			 November 1997 1,793 25 470 1,290 
			 November 2006 1,511 15 460 1,035 
			 (1) Claimant count by age includes computerised claims only. Dataset rounded to the nearest five.  Source: Jobcentre Plus administrative data

Valuation Office Agency

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library copies of the in-house staff magazine of the Valuation Office Agency from the last 12 months.

Dawn Primarolo: I have placed in the Library copies of the Valuation Office Agency's (VOA) in-house staff magazine from the last 12 months.

VAT

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average time is for which valued added tax payments have been delayed by the use of Extended Verification on UK mobile phone, computer parts and pharmaceutical export companies; and what the longest such delay has been.

Dawn Primarolo: HM Revenue and Customs does not collate the information requested and would incur disproportionate costs in doing so. Each case of verification is treated on its own merits, the time taken to reach a decision being that required to fully establish the veracity of the claim. However, if at any time during the verification HM Revenue and Customs identifies that part or the entire claim is unconnected to MTIC fraud and is otherwise valid, HM Revenue and Customs will make prompt repayment of the amount.

VAT

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library a copy of the internal manual of procedure for HM Revenue and Customs to implement Extended Verification on traders for value added tax.

Dawn Primarolo: HM Revenue and Customs has a duty to protect revenue and its targeted and risk-based in-depth verification of VAT repayment claims is a proportionate response to the organised criminal attack on the VAT system through attempted MTIC fraud. HM Revenue and Customs already places a significant proportion of its internal guidance on VAT on its website. Making available any further information on extended verification procedures would be likely to prejudice the assessment and collection of VAT.

Government Publications

Kate Hoey: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what  (a) guidance and  (b) instructions Her Majesty's Stationery Office follows on the size of margins in Government publications.

Vera Baird: I have been asked to reply.
	None. Her Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) is itself responsible for the provision of advice to Departments regarding Government publications. For those publications for which it is directly responsible HMSO takes care to ensure that the size of margins are set appropriately for the publication.

Government Publications

Kate Hoey: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what assessment she has made of  (a) the potential cost savings and  (b) the environmental impact of reducing the size of margins in official publications.

Vera Baird: I have been asked to reply.
	None. Those involved in the design of official publications are encouraged to minimise the cost, the size and the environmental impact of their publications. Her Majesty's Stationery Office will often remind Departments of the need for economy in the production of their publications. The overall aim for any publication though must be that it is both readable and accessible to all who will have a need or interest in its content.
	The size of margins is one aspect in the design of any publication which will also be affected by the page size, the length of the publication, typeface, typesize and line and paragraph spacing.
	Margins may also be affected by the nature of the printing process to be adopted and the size of the publication which will determine whether a larger inside margin is required to allow for binding.
	Margins are very important for readers, providing space to hold each page without hiding any of the text and providing a resting spot for a reader's eyes. Long lines of type can also be difficult and tiresome to read. It is very easy for readers to get lost making the transition from the end of one line of text to the beginning of the next. Where lines are lengthenedit is generally necessary to increase the spacebetween lines and the overall result is no saving in paper.

Post Offices

Peter Bone: To ask the Deputy Prime Ministerwhat estimate he has made of the percentage of people living in rural areas who are within one mile of a post office; and how many lived within one mile in 1997.

Jim Fitzpatrick: I have been asked to reply.
	I understand that POL's latest figures show that 81.95 per cent. of the population in rural areas are within one mile of a post office branch. The same information for 1997 is not available.

Assaults

Alan Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions took place for  (a) assaults and  (b) assaults with a minor injury in (i) each basic command unit in Durham Constabulary and (ii) each police force in each year since 2002; and how many were successful.

Tony McNulty: Information taken from the Court Proceedings Database held by the Office for Criminal Justice Reform showing the number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts and found guilty at all courts for the assault offences requested, broken down by police force area for 2002-05, is provided in the following tables.
	It is not possible to separately identify basic command units in Durham police force area as the data are not collected at that level of detail.
	
		
			  Number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts and found guilty at all courts for common assaults and Assaults occasioning actual bodily harm, by police force area, England and Wales 2002-05( 1, 2) 
			  Statutes: Various Offence class: Common assaults etc 
			   2002  2003  2004  2005 
			   Proceeded against  Found guilty  Proceeded against  Found guilty  Proceeded against  Found guilty  Proceeded against  Found guilty 
			 Avon and Somerset 1,362 754 1,419 789 1,604 934 1,890 1,279 
			 Bedfordshire 526 246 694 307 869 364 987 452 
			 Cambridgeshire 533 334 564 347 607 396 854 563 
			 Cheshire 801 508 890 544 891 575 1,207 831 
			 City of London 34 28 42 18 36 21 50 23 
			 Cleveland 407 234 625 350 860 426 706 444 
			 Cumbria 506 359 580 407 725 474 828 573 
			 Derbyshire 1,018 561 1,240 684 1,437 883 1,922 1,130 
			 Devon and Cornwall 1,617 1,044 1,648 1,041 1,953 1,204 2,164 1,333 
			 Dorset 602 363 545 340 596 406 773 518 
			 Durham 453 341 458 318 453 337 569 434 
			 Essex 1,455 840 1,543 894 1,796 1,068 2,429 1,419 
			 Gloucestershire 447 287 474 307 495 349 694 498 
			 Greater Manchester 1,648 998 1,888 1,183 2,808 1,825 3,222 2,135 
			 Hampshire 2,083 1,322 2,436 1,480 3,217 1,982 2,937 1,863 
			 Hertfordshire 610 376 830 461 1,179 621 1,654 856 
			 Humberside 692 444 846 587 1,022 755 1,089 842 
			 Kent 1,500 810 1,722 930 1,753 1,075 1,735 1,153 
			 Lancashire 1,569 844 1,755 993 1,802 1,034 2,371 1,512 
			 Leicestershire 944 527 1,090 630 1,200 734 1,810 1,097 
			 Lincolnshire 905 480 975 570 1,012 567 964 585 
			 Merseyside 1,217 671 1,647 946 2,159 1,153 2,319 1,287 
			 Metropolitan Police 5,210 2,829 5,427 2,941 6,020 3,416 7,125 4,063 
			 Norfolk 978 612 1,051 617 1,066 678 951 662 
			 North Yorkshire 708 420 673 438 891 582 1,126 765 
			 Northamptonshire 498 283 550 331 568 361 698 419 
			 Northumbria 1,431 776 1,779 947 1,698 1,106 1,699 1,128 
			 Nottinghamshire 1,892 910 1,940 906 1,750 917 1,966 1,098 
			 South Yorkshire 1,005 580 1,275 724 1,423 929 1,614 1,049 
			 Staffordshire 1,559 780 1,647 802 2,094 938 2,292 1,080 
			 Suffolk 805 467 957 536 1,140 704 1,122 770 
			 Surrey 637 293 844 415 964 492 1,045 601 
			 Sussex 1,435 768 1,496 809 1,845 1,075 1,811 1,099 
			 Thames Valley 1,464 796 1,528 841 1,691 984 2,508 1,524 
			 Warwickshire 274 192 276 176 285 194 365 273 
			 West Mercia 1,262 676 1,367 733 1,604 948 1,804 1,131 
			 West Midlands 5,203 2,467 5,537 2,529 5,567 2,793 4,514 2,848 
			 West Yorkshire 3,265 1,577 3,603 2,010 3,834 2,445 4,160 2,579 
			 Wiltshire 743 519 916 623 866 616 912 620 
			 Dyfed-Powys 534 258 556 317 587 350 574 358 
			 Gwent 630 374 606 343 594 371 645 387 
			 North Wales 774 476 704 501 845 566 956 643 
			 South Wales 977 525 1,083 617 1,223 682 1,391 820 
			 England and Wales 52,213 28,949 57,726 32,282 65,029 38,330 72,452 44,744 
		
	
	
		
			  Statute: Common Law and Offences against the Person Act 1861 S.47 Offence: Assaults occasioning actual bodily harm 
			   2002  2003  2004  2005 
			   Proceeded against  Found guilty  Proceeded against  Found guilty  Proceeded against  Found guilty  Proceeded against  Found guilty 
			 Avon and Somerset 718 316 778 358 544 280 576 389 
			 Bedfordshire 257 106 261 95 380 107 339 122 
			 Cambridgeshire 252 175 237 168 249 161 364 239 
			 Cheshire 757 335 648 282 380 233 557 340 
			 City of London 39 21 25 13 25 8 32 9 
			 Cleveland 332 142 388 162 322 191 357 220 
			 Cumbria 435 258 432 263 405 263 472 307 
			 Derbyshire 704 322 697 333 665 317 855 497 
			 Devon and Cornwall 830 368 906 415 771 396 736 363 
			 Dorset 296 139 247 144 228 129 358 220 
			 Durham 480 289 414 241 313 196 385 261 
			 Essex 526 242 618 258 672 291 698 285 
			 Gloucestershire 277 136 246 143 196 113 293 162 
			 Greater Manchester 2,583 1,064 3,106 1,128 2,978 1,288 1,954 1,228 
			 Hampshire 983 530 963 530 810 478 860 521 
			 Hertfordshire 501 259 495 200 601 243 740 282 
			 Humberside 613 308 640 336 453 298 433 306 
			 Kent 849 287 908 350 564 283 522 379 
			 Lancashire 1,102 570 1,164 545 856 483 893 555 
			 Leicestershire 747 378 724 338 681 325 786 375 
			 Lincolnshire 297 120 266 152 320 165 267 156 
			 Merseyside 1,319 542 1,754 587 1,576 588 910 540 
			 Metropolitan Police 3,920 1,412 3,706 1,361 2,869 1,340 2,633 1,359 
			 Norfolk 328 177 334 142 227 116 244 159 
			 North Yorkshire 287 160 293 185 307 194 359 237 
			 Northamptonshire 380 144 397 144 289 161 346 206 
			 Northumbria 1,236 544 1,253 509 884 441 740 470 
			 Nottinghamshire 776 297 669 272 483 271 467 311 
			 South Yorkshire 710 434 746 421 563 423 629 453 
			 Staffordshire 543 281 564 279 630 292 604 332 
			 Suffolk 376 166 468 185 360 190 372 237 
			 Surrey 227 93 247 96 233 118 222 126 
			 Sussex 618 286 655 302 458 255 629 323 
			 Thames Valley 716 296 715 329 591 309 800 426 
			 Warwickshire 162 96 138 79 157 98 167 130 
			 West Mercia 662 375 641 343 496 297 647 400 
			 West Midlands 3,957 1,415 4,246 1,341 3,267 1,223 1,806 969 
			 West Yorkshire 1,811 558 1,593 579 1,246 661 1,023 623 
			 Wiltshire 234 125 268 169 219 146 251 190 
			 Dyfed-Powys 450 172 444 219 268 175 256 161 
			 Gwent 430 248 490 241 432 233 378 209 
			 North Wales 331 181 341 199 334 207 440 259 
			 South Wales 1,246 537 1,286 525 1,383 552 1,265 574 
			 England and Wales 34,297 14,904 35,411 14,961 29,685 14,538 27,665 15,910 
			 (1) These data are provided on a principal offence basis. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by police forces and courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to insure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.

Assaults

Alan Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) assaults and  (b) assaults with a minor injury took place on police officers in (i) each basic command unit in Durham Constabulary and (ii) each police force in each year since 2002.

Tony McNulty: The numbers of serious and other assaults on police officers are given in the following tables. These data are not available by basic command unit and have been provided at force level.
	
		
			  Serious and other assaults( 1)  on police officers 2001-02 to 2004-05( 2,3) 
			   2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05 
			  Force  Serious  Other  Serious  Other  Serious  Other  Serious  Other 
			 Avon and Somerset 64 272 0 366 3 490 0 296 
			 Bedfordshire 18 76 8 66 2 115 0 106 
			 Cambridgeshire 1 117 2 149 2 166 1 148 
			 Cheshire 5 214 4 348 13 378 2 337 
			 City of London 2 60 0 43 4 44 2 51 
			 Cleveland 44 214 0 59 0 67 0 63 
			 Cumbria 3 77 12 108 4 107 2 93 
			 Derbyshire 0 241 0 290 1 229 0 228 
			 Devon and Cornwall 3 253 7 319 12 306 19 314 
			 Dorset 1 155 1 196 1 130 1 164 
			 Durham 3 301 1 240 2 219 3 133 
			 Dyfed-Powys 7 115 2 132 4 100 4 137 
			 Essex 0 225 0 260 1 374 2 393 
			 Gloucestershire 2 121 1 148 3 144 0 170 
			 Greater Manchester 19 855 25 909 — — 16 1,006 
			 Gwent 0 340 3 178 2 207 2 176 
			 Hampshire 5 172 12 490 25 518 24 384 
			 Hertfordshire 0 169 1 193 2 169 0 185 
			 Humberside 12 176 21 240 14 182 3 127 
			 Kent 2 361 25 342 27 347 5 394 
			 Lancashire(4,5) 57 239 67 264 — — — — 
			 Leicestershire 0 235 8 202 11 191 14 291 
			 Lincolnshire 3 164 6 162 0 166 29 169 
			 Merseyside 0 147 0 10 0 182 0 165 
			 Metropolitan Police — 1,438 — 1,898 — 2,349 25 2,589 
			 Norfolk 8 163 6 220 16 166 9 199 
			 Northamptonshire — 136 — 149 7 102 0 98 
			 Northumbria 37 501 0 691 0 39 25 215 
			 North Wales 0 111 0 91 7 89 0 111 
			 North Yorkshire 2 109 7 118 8 232 0 279 
			 Nottinghamshire 3 171 0 391 19 90 10 224 
			 South Wales 0 893 5 1,037 2 702 5 707 
			 South Yorkshire 10 199 3 161 5 187 2 161 
			 Staffordshire 5 174 2 144 0 119 0 158 
			 Suffolk 4 166 1 160 10 175 2 193 
			 Surrey 18 157 0 223 9 216 18 238 
			 Sussex 7 277 11 175 6 324 11 405 
			 Thames Valley 5 315 4 312 5 308 9 260 
			 Warwickshire 4 152 3 201 0 250 0 256 
			 West Mercia 18 234 10 235 17 210 7 199 
			 West Midlands(4,5) 11 1,085 2 1,262 — — — — 
			 West Yorkshire 6 1,015 2 779 9 847 7 882 
			 Wiltshire 11 101 1 136 0 165 3 121 
			 (1) Data collated on behalf of and published by HMIC. Serious assaults are those for which the charge would be under Sections 18 and 20 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861. Recording practices may vary between forces. (2) Financial year runs 1 April to 31 March inclusive. (3) Data for 2005-06 has been collated but not yet been validated. Figures will be available in the HMIC Annual Report 2005-06 due for publication by March 2007. (4) Lancashire and West Midlands were not able to provide breakdowns of numbers for different assaults in 2003-04, however the number of overall assaults was 462 and 1,112 respectively. (5) Lancashire and West Midlands were not able to provide breakdowns of numbers for different assaults in 2004-05, however the number of overall assaults was 521 and 910 respectively.

Asylum Registration Cards

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum registration cards were issued in each month since July 2006.

Liam Byrne: The number of application registration cards (ARC) issued in each month since July 2006 is as follows:
	
		
			  Month  Total 
			 July 2,704 
			 August 3,441 
			 September 3,354 
			 October 2,895 
			 November 2,963 
			 December(1) 1,091 
			 (1) 1-11 inclusive

Asylum and Immigration

Andrew Pelling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made by his Department in working with the Local Government Association, London councils, the Department for Education and Skills and the Department for Communities and Local Government to review the cost of supporting destitute failed asylum seekers.

Liam Byrne: The Home Office has agreed to establish a working group to discuss a wide range of issues raised by local authorities in respect of asylum seekers, including the costs of supporting those that are destitute but are not supported directly by the Home Office. It is expected that this group will be meeting early in 2007 to agree a programme of work for the year based upon proposals from the local authority representative organisations. This group will specifically focus on issues that relate to more than one local authority.
	In the interim the Home Office continues to work with the local authority representative organisations and individual local authorities on specific issues as they are raised.

Asylum and Immigration

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many under-18s were detained in immigration removal centres on 30 November 2006.

Liam Byrne: On 30 November there were a total of56 under-18s detained in immigration removal centres.

Asylum and Immigration

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State forthe Home Department how many under-18s wereheld at Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre on30 November 2006.

Liam Byrne: There were no under-18s heldat Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre on30 November 2006.

Bereavement Counselling

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what services are provided by Government for people bereaved as a result of a  (a) homicide and  (b) road crash; what the cost was for providing these services in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Home Office provides services for people bereaved as a result of a homicide through an annual grant in aid to Victim Support and an annual grant to Support After Murder and Manslaughter (SAMM). The Home Office has also produced the "Advice for Bereaved Families and Friends Following Murder and Manslaughter" pack since 2004.
	The Home Office funds the BrakeCare guide for bereaved families and friends. This has been funded since 2001 and is provided to families by police officers following a road crash. The cost for producing the guide in 2006-07 is £50,324.17.
	The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority also provides financial compensation to the relatives and dependents of people killed as a result of violent crime.
	
		
			  Victim support 
			   Funding (£ million) 
			 2002-03 29.3 
			 2003-04 30 
			 2004-05 30 
			 2005-06 30 
			 2006-07 30 
		
	
	
		
			  SAMM 
			   Funding (£) 
			 2002-03 130,000 
			 2003-04 140,000 
			 2004-05 140,000 
			 2005-06 140,000 
			 2006-07 140,000

Child Immigrants

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children who had been detained for more than 28 days were being held at immigration detention centres on  (a) 31 August,  (b) 30 September and  (c) 31 October.

Liam Byrne: Quarterly snapshots are published showing the number of people detained under Immigration Act powers on the last Saturday of each quarter. As at 30 September 2006, there were no persons recorded as being under 18, detained solely under Immigration Act powers, who had been detained for more than 28 days.
	The number of children detained with their families solely under Immigration Act powers will change from day to day. However, internal management information shows that, as at 31 August 2006 there were three minors, and as at 31 October there were three minors detained with their families under Immigration Act powers, who had been detained for more than 28 days. These individuals were all detained as part of families whose detention, as a group was considered necessary. These figures do not constitute part of national statistics as they are based on management information. This information has not been quality assured under national statistics protocols and should be treated as provisional.
	Minors are detained only in two limited circumstances: first, as part of a family group whose detention is considered appropriate; second, when unaccompanied, while alternative care arrangements are made and normally just overnight. Whilst the detention of families with children is very regrettable, it nevertheless remains necessary in appropriate cases in order to maintain an effective immigration control and to tackle abuses of the asylum system.
	Information on the number of persons detained is published in the Quarterly Asylum Bulletin, on the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate website at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1 .html

Crime: Cumbria

David Maclean: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many offences of  (a) violence against the person, (b) theft and  (c) criminal damage were committed in Cumbria in each year since 1998.

Tony McNulty: The information requested is given in the following tables.
	
		
			  Table 1: selected offences recorded by the police in Cumbria, 1998-99 to 2001-02 Number of offences 
			  Number of offences 
			   Violence against the person  Theft and handling stolen goods  Criminal damage 
			 1998-99 5,582 16,504 8,405 
			 1999-2000 5,142 14,687 8,943 
			 2000-01 5,359 14,094 10,126 
			 2001-02 5,334 14,069 10,120 
			  Note: Expanded offence coverage and revised counting rules came into effect on 1 April 1998. The figures in this table are therefore not directly comparable with those for earlier years. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: selected offences recorded by the police in Cumbria, 2002-03 to 2005-06 
			  Number of offences 
			   Violence against the person  Theft and handling stolen goods  Criminal damage 
			 2002-03 5,725 13,821 10,304 
			 2003-04 6,874 13,210 11,629 
			 2004-05 9,195 13,076 12,858 
			 2005-06 9,250 12,249 13,648 
			  Note: The data in this table takes account of the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in April 2002. These figures are not directly comparable with those for earlier years.

Departmental Expenditure

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost was to his Department of conferences relating to the New Asylum Model in the last 12 months.

Liam Byrne: Costs in the last 12 months total £42,130.19.

Departmental Library

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the budget for his Department's library was for each of the last five years.

John Reid: holding answer 19 December 2006
	The Home Office library forms part of a larger unit (information services unit) which has had a number of different functions over the last five years, and a budget for the library alone cannot be isolated using the records available. The overall budget for this unit in each of the last five years is shown as follows. The figures include provision for various costs incurred on behalf of the Home Office group, such as copyright licensing, that have been or are currently funded from the unit budget.
	
		
			   Costs incurred (£) 
			 2002-03 2,143,657 
			 2003-04 2,396,680 
			 2004-05 1,631,000 
			 2005-06 1,195,315 
			 2006-07 1,044,181

Departmental Staff

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) marketing officers,  (b) communications officers and  (c) press officers are employed in his Department; and what the total expenditure on communications for his Department was on (i) Government Information and Communication Service staff and (ii) other (A) press officers, (B) special advisers and (C) staff in the last year for which figures are available.

Liam Byrne: The Government Information and Communication Service (GICS) has now been replaced by the Government Communication Network (GCN). The categories of staff asked about do not match the recognised GCN "specialisms". The two categories of staff that do fit are Press and Marketing officers.
	As of the 31 October 2006 the number of Press officers employed was 37, and the number of Marketing officers was 15. All were employed with the Department's Communication Directorate.
	The latest full year's communication expenditure data available is for 2005-06. The total marketing expenditure for that year was £22.1 million.
	This included all marketing campaigns, and publications. The total press communications spend for the same financial year was £182,000.

DNA Database

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people under 18 years who have DNA profiles stored on the national database have not been charged or cautioned for an offence; and if he will make a statement.

Joan Ryan: Data on whether persons with a profile on the National DNA Database (NDNAD) have been charged or cautioned for an offence is not held on the NDNAD, but is held on the police national computer (PNC). However, the data requested is not currently available routinely from the PNC.
	The last available data on this issue was provided in the reply given by my hon. Friend, the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department (Andy Burnham), on 31 January 2006,  Official Report, column 367. It was obtained from data extracted from the PNC for monitoring and research purposes.
	Updated information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost by cross-searching approximately three million records retained for such persons on the PNC.

DNA Database

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases of  (a) murder,  (b) manslaughter,  (c) grievous bodily harm and  (d) rape have been solved as a result of the retention on the DNA database of DNA profiles taken as a result of previous arrests which had not led to successful prosecutions.

Joan Ryan: holding answer 19 December 2006
	The most recent figures available are the result of research carried out in January 2006 which indicates that: 37 murders/manslaughters, 16 attempted murders and 90 rapes have so far been linked to people who had DNA samples taken on arrest but who were subsequently not proceeded against for the arresting offence.
	The figures are not collated as a matter of course and no further research has taken place as this would be a major project taking approximately two months.

DNA Database

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many DNA profiles were recorded on the national DNA database in each of the last two years.

Joan Ryan: In 2004-05, 521,117 subject sample profiles were added to the National DNA Database (NDNAD). In addition, 59,048 crime scene sample profiles from unsolved crime scenes were added to the Database.
	In 2005-06, 715,239 subject sample profiles and 68,774 crime stain profiles were added to the NDNAD.

DNA Database

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost is of collecting and entering one DNA profile onto the National DNA Database; and if he will make a statement.

Joan Ryan: The costs for collecting and processing one DNA sample fall to individual police forces and establishing this is dependent on the contractual agreement between the force and the forensic supplier. This information is deemed to be commercially confidential.

Driver Improvement Courses

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether acceptance of a place on a driver improvement course offered by Bedfordshire police in lieu of prosecution involves admission of liability for the alleged offence on the part of the motorist.

Tony McNulty: Acceptance of a place on a Driver Improvement Scheme does not require admission of liability for the alleged offence on the part of the motorist.

Driver Improvement Courses

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of fees for the driver improvement course offered by Bedfordshire police service to motorists is received by the service.

Tony McNulty: The national Driver Improvement Scheme is managed by a steering group chaired by ACPO and with representatives from the Home Office and Department for Transport. Courses within the scheme are provided by independent contractors on behalf of the police and payment is to the service provider. Information on local contractual arrangements is not available centrally.

Efficiency Gains

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will break down by area of expenditure the £445 million efficiency gains set out in paragraph 6.18 of the pre-Budget report; and how much of those gains was achieved from externally procured or contracted services.

Liam Byrne: holding answer 19 December 2006
	The Department has reduced the cost of providing Asylum Support by £161 million since 2004-05 by renegotiating accommodation contracts with external contractors and ensuring that new contract arrangements minimise the payments of voids (contracted accommodation which we paid for regardless of occupancy). We have also released £221 million by ensuring applicants are given the right status, clearing older cases out of the system and improving processes to cease support efficiently and £63 million by increasing the use of more efficient pre-planned initial accommodation rather than expensive emergency accommodation.

Gershon Review

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much has been spent by his Department and agencies in order to achieve Gershon efficiency savings; whether these costs were included in reports of headline efficiency savings; and if he will make a statement.

Liam Byrne: The baseline and approach to assessing increases in Value for Money in my Department are set out in the technical note, available via:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/documents/sr2004-value-for-money-tech-note/SR2004-Value-Money-Target?view=Binary.
	The focus of the Department's Value for Money programme is to stimulate genuine improvements in outcomes including the effective delivery of public services at the front line.

Harmondsworth Centre

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of those resident at the Harmondsworth Immigration Detention Centre on29 November 2006 have  (a) been bailed,  (b) been transferred to (i) other immigration detention centres, (ii) secure prison accommodation, (iii) open prison accommodation and (iv) police cells and  (c) remained resident at Harmondsworth since that date.

John Reid: Of the detainees resident in Harmondsworth Immigration Removal Centre on29 November, none were bailed. 422 detainees were transferred to other places of detention: 309 to other Immigration Removal Centres, 102 to Prison Service accommodation and 11 to police stations. 60 remained in Harmondsworth.

Harmondsworth Centre

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will place in the Library the results of internal inquiries into disturbances at Harmondsworth Immigration Detention Centre before 29 November.

John Reid: An investigation was carried out by the Head of Security Group, HM Prison Service following the disturbance at Harmondsworth Immigration Removal Centre on 19/20 July 2004. A copy of this report was placed in the House of Commons Library on 16 November 2006. (HC 1265)

Harmondsworth Centre

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will conduct an inquiry into the disturbances at Harmondsworth Immigration Detention Centre on 29 November.

John Reid: An inquiry will be conducted into the disturbances at Harmondsworth Immigration Removal Centre on the night of 28 November. A decision on who will undertake this investigation is currently being considered.

Harmondsworth Centre

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the contract to run the Harmondsworth Immigration Detention Centre includes provision for his Department's press office to deal with press inquiries on behalf of the contractor  (a) at all times and  (b) in response to specific events.

John Reid: The Contract between Harmondsworth Detention Services and the Secretary of State forthe Home Department ('the Authority') to run Harmondsworth IRC does not include provision for the Authority's press office to deal with press inquiries on behalf of the contractor  (a) at all times and  (b) in response to specific events.

Harmondsworth Centre

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many detainees have been removed from Harmondsworth Immigration Removal Centre following the incident on 28 November; and where they have been accommodated.

Liam Byrne: The number of detainees removed from Harmondsworth Immigration Removal Centre following the incident on 28 November was 422. The detainees have been relocated to other removal centres within the immigration detention estate and to prisons.

Immigration and Nationality Directorate

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average time taken by the forgery unit of the immigration and nationality directorate to resolve a case was in the latest period for which figures are available.

John Reid: The IND Intelligence Service National Document Fraud Unit (NDFU) is responsible for conducting examinations of suspect travel documents for the immigration and nationality directorate. Those requiring urgent witness statements for court proceedings are processed within 24 hours others within five working days. Where a statement is challenged by the defence in a court case, a full expert statement is provided within 10 days. All other requests for travel document examination are processed within 28 days.

Immigration and Nationality Directorate

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases the forgery unit of the immigration and nationality directorate are working on.

John Reid: I am advised that in an average month, the IND Intelligence Service National Document Fraud Unit, which is responsible for suspect document examination in the immigration and nationality directorate, will conduct between 1,300 to 1,500 examinations. In November 2006, 1,432 document examinations were conducted.

Immigration and Nationality Directorate

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many forged document cases at the immigration and nationality directorate are unsolved.

John Reid: The National Document Fraud Unit (NDFU) is the principal unit responsible for the examination of suspect travel documents in the immigration and nationality directorate (IND) and undertakes examinations on a rolling basis as detailed in the answer provided to the hon. Member (parliamentary question 112728). As such, there are no unsolved cases.

Justice and Home Affairs: Passerelle

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Government are opposed in principle to the use of the passerelle in Justice and Home Affairs.

Joan Ryan: I refer the hon. Member to the statement given to the House by the Foreign Secretary on18 December 2006. As my right hon. Friend noted, the Government firmly believe that the current focus should be on getting JHA policies and cooperation right and it welcomed the emphasis on practical co-operation in the conclusions from the European Council. As we stated at the December Justice and Home Affairs Council, the Government regard the current debate as over.

Langley House

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether there are any plans to renegotiate the contract with Langley House to supply secure beds to the Home Office.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The National Probation Directorate has had in place a service level agreement (SLA) with Langley House Trust since February 2003. Under the terms of the SLA, places are available across most of its projects, some of which have 24 hour staffing cover, as well as nine enhanced supervisions beds. Officials are currently in discussions with Langley House Trust about an agreement to provide supervised accommodation in 2007-08 for offenders managed by probation areas, which will supersede the existing SLA.

National Offender Management Service

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State forthe Home Department what changes he expects in the number of probation officers required under the offender management model of supervision.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Offender Management Model is subject to a phased implementation which began in 2005/06. We have yet to decide what the full extent of implementation will be but our current plans would require in the order of an additional 270 offender managers by the end of 2008/09. These would be a mixture of probation officers and probation service officers.

National Terrorist Financial Investigation Unit

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how the £55,000 cash sum seized from a proscribed terrorist organisation by the National Terrorist Financial Investigation Unit reported in 2002 has been disposed of.

Tony McNulty: In the later part of 2001 and early 2002 two separate cash seizures were made by the National Terrorist Financial Investigation Unit (NTFIU). These were £17,000 in 2001 and 105,000 deutschmarks (2002). The later was converted to about £35,000. Both these seizures were made under the Terrorism Act 2000 and were subsequently forfeited. Upon being forfeited the funds were passed from the Metropolitan Police Service to HM Treasury.

National Terrorist Financial Investigation Unit

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in what way the seizure of funds from a proscribed terrorist organisation by the National Terrorist Financial Investigation Unit make a significant impact on that organisation's ability to operate.

Tony McNulty: Many terrorist groups on the list of proscribed organisations are based abroad but have used the UK for funding purposes. Proscribing such organisations and seizing their funds can severely limit their operations, as all aspects of terrorist activity cost money and such organisations are often dependent upon funds raised in foreign countries, including the UK. Operations involving the seizures of cash have a dual effect of both preventing terrorist attacks and disrupting the flow of terrorist funds.
	The National Terrorist Financial Investigation Unit is the UK's law enforcement agency responsible for the investigation of terrorist finance and therefore plays the leading role in identifying funds associated with terrorism. Such funds are liable to seizure and forfeiture as set out in various legislation, including the Terrorism Act 2000 and the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001.

National Terrorist Financial Investigation Unit

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much the National Terrorist Financial Investigation Unit cost between 2001 and 2006.

Tony McNulty: For reasons of national security, the Home Office does not comment on the operational capacity of units, like the National Terrorist Financial Investigation Unit, involved in counter terrorism.

New Asylum Model

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many extra staff have been recruited to his Department to operate the New Asylum Model.

Liam Byrne: Recruitment to the New Asylum Model does not represent an increase in total asylum staffing.

Prison Management

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what evidence he has collected on the comparative efficacy of  (a) private prisons and  (b) public sector managed prisons in (i) reducing recidivism, (ii) effective use of capacity and (iii) value for money.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 6 December 2006
	The efficacy of PFI and public sector managed prisons was examined by the National Audit Office (NAO) in their 2003 report, "The Operational Performance of PFI Prisons".
	The NAO report examined the performance of PFI prisons against their contractual requirements and against a range of comparable prisons run by the Prison Service. The NAO also considered the impact that the PFI has had on the Prison Service generally. At the time of the NAO report there were seven operational private prisons. The NAO reported that these seven prisons had brought benefits to the Prison Service.
	In addition to opening privately run prisons, the Home Office has also introduced performance testing for public sector managed prisons seeking to improve performance in the public sector managed estate. There is evidence that performance testing of prisons has delivered significant improvements.
	HM Chief Inspector of Prisons has reported on significant improvements in performance following performance testing for HMP Dartmoor (2001) and HMP Bullingdon (2004).

Recidivism

Alan Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent estimate is of the rate of recidivism amongst  (a) child sex offenders,  (b) other sex offenders,  (c) violent crime offenders and  (d) other classes of offender.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The most recent re-offending rates by offence sentenced were published in November as "Re-offending of Adults: Results from the 2003 Cohort", Home Office Statistical Bulletin 20/06. The report is available online at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/hosb2006.pdfhttp:www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/hosb2006.pdf and covers offenders starting community sentences or being discharged from prison in England and Wales in the first quarter of 2003. Actual re-offending rates by sentenced offence can be found in Table A2 and are illustrated in figure six.
	Evidence suggests that offenders do not specialise in the type of offences that they commit. In the sample used for this publication, only 29 per cent. of those who re-offended committed their first re-offence in the same type as their original offence.

Recidivism

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the adjusted re-offending rate for persons on community orders was during the two year period following completion of the order at the latest date available.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Information regarding re-offending data after the community order has been completed is not readily available. Re-offending data are calculated from the commencement of the community order or from the completion of a custodial sentence.
	Re-offending rates are no longer adjusted. Previously, reconviction data were adjusted to take account of 'pseudo-convictions' which were offences that occurred before the sentence but processed during the sentence. As recidivism is now measured using re-offending, adjustment for pseudo-convictions is no longer needed.
	Please see Table A5 of "Re-offending of Adults: Evidence from the 2003 Cohort" for the most recent information on re-offending rates by disposal available at this link:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/hosb2006.pdf
	Pages 10 and 11, including figure nine, of the same publication provide evidence regarding the relationship between disposal and re-offending rates.

Release and Recall Section

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many contractors have referred breaches of curfew orders to the Release and Recall Section in each quarter for which figures are available; how many of these breaches were referred onto the police; and what the average time was between a referral to the Release and Recall Section and the informing of the police.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 18 December 2006
	At the start of the Home Detention Curfew Scheme in January 1999, there were three electronic monitoring contractors operating across England and Wales. New contracts were negotiated in 2005 resulting in two contractors taking over the operation. The contractors are responsible for all electronic monitoring schemes, including that of Home Detention Curfew. Release and Recall Section within the National Offender Management Service is responsible for the recall of offenders who have been released on HDC whereas the responsibility for breaching curfew orders falls to the courts.
	The contractors are required to notify Release and Recall Section of breaches of the curfew condition by offenders on Home Detention Curfew. Figures for breaches are broken down annually. While reconfiguring this information into quarters would incur disproportionate cost, the following table provides the total number of offenders recalled to custody by Release and Recall Section for breaching the conditions of Home Detention Curfew since the scheme was first introduced in January 1999.
	Release and Recall Section notify the police in every case where an offender is recalled to custody, and have a target to do this within 24 hours of being notified by the contractor of the breach of curfew. Throughout the entirety of the scheme there has been almost 100 per cent. compliance with the target.
	
		
			  Total number of offenders recalled to custody by Release and Recall Section for breaching the conditions of Home Detention Curfew since the scheme was first introduced in January1999 
			   Number 
			 1999 750 
			 2000 713 
			 2001 553 
			 2002 1,206 
			 2003 2,211 
			 2004 2,395 
			 2005 2,148 
			 2006 (end of September) 1,391 
			 Total 11,367

Retirement Age

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State forthe Home Department pursuant to the answer of4 December 2006,  Official Report, columns 189-90W, on the retirement age, what his Department's policy is on the application of the national default retirement age to staff below the senior civil service.

Liam Byrne: The Home Office has applied the default retirement age of 65 for staff below the senior civil service.

Sentencing Discounts

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will assess the merits of introducing differential sentencing discounts for guilty pleas made  (a) before trial and  (b) at trial.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 11 December 2006
	Such a differential is already provided for in the guideline on Reduction in Sentence for a Guilty Plea, published by the Sentencing Guidelines Council in 2004. It states that
	"the level of the reduction will be gauged on a sliding scale ranging from a maximum of one third (where the guilty plea was entered at the first reasonable opportunity in relation to the offence for which sentence is being imposed), reducing to a maximum of one quarter (where a trial date has been set) and to a maximum of one tenth (for a guilty plea entered at the 'door of the court' or after the trial has begun)."

Terrorism Act

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in how many cases of people arrested under the Terrorism Act a charge was ultimately brought under  (a) the threshold test and  (b) the full code test.

Tony McNulty: The police and CPS do not routinely collate this information and to answer the question could be done only at disproportionate costs.

Victim Support

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many victims were supported by Victim Support in each of the last five years; and of these, what percentage were victims bereaved as a result of a criminal offence.

Gerry Sutcliffe: In 2005-06 almost 1.4 million people were referred to Victim Support for help. Of these 1,094 or 0.07 per cent. were as a result of homicide (from Victim Support's Annual Report 2005-06. Victim Support's definitions of homicide are murder, attempted murder, threat or conspiracy to murder, manslaughter, and infanticide and child destruction).
	This is an increase in referrals from 2004-05 when nearly 1.3 million people were referred to Victim Support. Of these, 1,168 or 0.09 per cent. were as a result of homicide.
	In 2005-06, 642 people were referred to Victim Support as a result of road death (including victims of criminal offences and non-criminal offences). The previous year the number was 947.

Victim Support

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what victim groups have received money from the Victim's Support Fund since it was set up in 2004, broken down by type of crime; how much in each year has been provided for each group since 2004; and whether there are plans to extend the range of victims' groups eligible for support.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Since it opened the Victims Fund has focused on supporting victims of sexual violence and abuse. It was opened with £4 million distributed over two years (2004-06) and this year we invested an additional £1.25 million into the fund. The Victims Fund has been used to resource a wide range of provisions including: £3.25 million directly into voluntary and community sector organisations; the development of sexual assault referral centres (SARCs); a Care and Evidence training package; and a free publication entitled "From Report to Court: A Legal Handbook for Adult Survivors of sexual violence". We will make announcements in due course about the scope and arrangements for the 2007-08 Victims Fund grant scheme.